What is the H3N8 avian flu and where did it originate?
This virus is part of the influenza A family, which has infected a wide variety of animals, including ducks, chickens, pigs, whales, horses, and seals. Only birds harbor all known influenza A virus subtypes, but certain virus subtypes are species-specific.
More recently, the H3N8 virus from horses has crossed over and caused outbreaks in dogs.
The A H3N8 virus has mainly caused outbreaks in horses.
Influenza A viruses that are normally spread between animals of the same species can sometimes interbreed and cause illness in another species. For example, the H3N8 virus from horses has crossed over and caused outbreaks in dogs.
In 2012, H3N8 was blamed for the deaths of more than 160 seals off the northeast coast of the United States after it caused deadly pneumonia in the animals.
“They generally result in dead-end transmission, possibly due to the lack of viral adaptation to the new host species,” says Raúl Rivas González, Professor of Microbiology at the University of Salamanca in an article for The Conversation.
First human case of H3N8 bird flu in China
Chinese health authorities reported that a four-year-old boy from the central province of Henan was infected with the variant after developing a fever and other symptoms on April 5.