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Vector-Borne and Zoonotic Diseases
Gene Segment Reassortment Between American and Asian Lineages of Avian Influenza Virus from Waterfowl in the Beringia Area

To cite this article:
J. Wahlgren, J. Waldenström, S. Sahlin, P.D. Haemig, R.A.M. Fouchier, A.D.M.E. Osterhaus, J. Pinhassi, J. Bonnedahl, M. Pisareva, M. Grudinin, O. Kiselev, J. Hernandez, K.I. Falk, Å. Lundkvist, B. Olsen. Vector-Borne and Zoonotic Diseases. December 2008, 8(6): 783-790. doi:10.1089/vbz.2007.0274.

Published in Volume: 8 Issue 6: December 15, 2008
Online Ahead of Print: July 18, 2008

Full Text: • PDF for printing (1,046.8 KB) • PDF w/ links (977 KB)


J. Wahlgren 
Department of Microbiology, Tumor and Cell Biology (MTC), Karolinska Institutet, Stockholm, Sweden.
Swedish Institute for Infectious Disease Control, Solna, Sweden.
J. Waldenström 
Section for Zoonotic Ecology and Epidemiology, Kalmar University, Kalmar, Sweden.
S. Sahlin 
Department of Microbiology, Tumor and Cell Biology (MTC), Karolinska Institutet, Stockholm, Sweden.
Swedish Institute for Infectious Disease Control, Solna, Sweden.
P.D. Haemig 
Section for Zoonotic Ecology and Epidemiology, Kalmar University, Kalmar, Sweden.
R.A.M. Fouchier 
Department of Virology and National Influenza Center, Erasmus Medical Center, Rotterdam, The Netherlands.
A.D.M.E. Osterhaus 
Department of Virology and National Influenza Center, Erasmus Medical Center, Rotterdam, The Netherlands.
J. Pinhassi 
Section for Zoonotic Ecology and Epidemiology, Kalmar University, Kalmar, Sweden.
J. Bonnedahl 
Section for Zoonotic Ecology and Epidemiology, Kalmar University, Kalmar, Sweden.
M. Pisareva 
Research Institute of Influenza, Russian Academy of Medical Science, St. Petersburg, Russian Federation.
M. Grudinin 
Research Institute of Influenza, Russian Academy of Medical Science, St. Petersburg, Russian Federation.
O. Kiselev 
Research Institute of Influenza, Russian Academy of Medical Science, St. Petersburg, Russian Federation.
J. Hernandez 
Section for Zoonotic Ecology and Epidemiology, Kalmar University, Kalmar, Sweden.
K.I. Falk 
Department of Microbiology, Tumor and Cell Biology (MTC), Karolinska Institutet, Stockholm, Sweden.
Swedish Institute for Infectious Disease Control, Solna, Sweden.
Å. Lundkvist 
Department of Microbiology, Tumor and Cell Biology (MTC), Karolinska Institutet, Stockholm, Sweden.
Swedish Institute for Infectious Disease Control, Solna, Sweden.
B. Olsen 
Section for Zoonotic Ecology and Epidemiology, Kalmar University, Kalmar, Sweden.
Section of Infectious Diseases, Department of Medical Sciences, Uppsala University Hospital, Uppsala, Sweden.

Since prehistoric times, the Bering Strait area (Beringia) has served as an avenue of dispersal between the Old and the New Worlds. On a field expedition to this area, we collected fecal samples from dabbling ducks, geese, shorebirds, and gulls on the Chukchi Peninsula, Siberia, and Pt. Barrow, Alaska, and characterized the subtypes of avian influenza virus present in them. Four of 202 samples (2%) from Alaska were positive for influenza A virus RNA in two independent polymerase chain reaction (PCR)-based screening assays, while all shorebird samples from the Chukchi Peninsula were negative. Subtypes H3N8 and H6N1 were recorded once, while subtype H8N4 was found in two samples. Full-length sequences were obtained from the three unique isolates, and phylogenetic analysis with representative sequences for the Eurasian and North American lineages of influenza A virus showed that one HA gene clustered with the Eurasian rather than the North American lineage. However, the closest relative to this sequence was a North American isolate from Delaware described in 2002, indicating that a H6 spillover from Asia has established itself in North America.

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