Unexpected Pathogen Diversity Detected in Australian Avifauna Highlights Potential Biosecurity Challenges

Vasilli Kasimov; Michelle Wille; Subir Sarker; Yalun Dong; Renfu Shao; Clancy Hall; Dominique Potvin; Gabriel Conroy; Ludovica Valenza; Amber Gillett; Peter Timms; Martina Jelocnik

doi:10.3390/v15010143

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Unexpected Pathogen Diversity Detected in Australian Avifauna Highlights Potential Biosecurity Challenges

Journal article

Open access

Peer reviewed

Unexpected Pathogen Diversity Detected in Australian Avifauna Highlights Potential Biosecurity Challenges

Vasilli Kasimov, Michelle Wille, Subir Sarker, Yalun Dong, Renfu Shao, Clancy Hall, Dominique Potvin, Gabriel Conroy, Ludovica Valenza, Amber Gillett, …

Viruses, Vol.15(1), pp.1-22

2023

DOI: https://doi.org/10.3390/v15010143

PMCID: PMC9865187

PMID: 36680183

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Abstract

Australia

avipoxvirus

beak and feather disease

birds

biosecurity

chlamydia

Columbid aplhaherpesvirus 1

herpesvirus

Psittacid alphaherpesvirus 1

wildlife disease

Birds may act as hosts for numerous pathogens, including members of the family Chlamydiaceae, beak and feather disease virus (BFDV), avipoxviruses, Columbid alphaherpesvirus 1 (CoAHV1) and Psittacid alphaherpesvirus 1 (PsAHV1), all of which are a significant biosecurity concern in Australia. While Chlamydiaceae and BFDV have previously been detected in Australian avian taxa, the prevalence and host range of avipoxviruses, CoAHV1 and PsAHV1 in Australian birds remain undetermined. To better understand the occurrence of these pathogens, we screened 486 wild birds (kingfisher, parrot, pigeon and raptor species) presented to two wildlife hospitals between May 2019 and December 2021. Utilising various qPCR assays, we detected PsAHV1 for the first time in wild Australian birds (37/486; 7.61%), in addition to BFDV (163/468; 33.54%), Chlamydiaceae (98/468; 20.16%), avipoxviruses (46/486; 9.47%) and CoAHV1 (43/486; 8.85%). Phylogenetic analysis revealed that BFDV sequences detected from birds in this study cluster within two predominant superclades, infecting both psittacine and non-psittacine species. However, BFDV disease manifestation was only observed in psittacine species. All Avipoxvirus sequences clustered together and were identical to other global reference strains. Similarly, PsAHV1 sequences from this study were detected from a series of novel hosts (apart from psittacine species) and identical to sequences detected from Brazilian psittacine species, raising significant biosecurity concerns, particularly for endangered parrot recovery programs. Overall, these results highlight the high pathogen diversity in wild Australian birds, the ecology of these pathogens in potential natural reservoirs, and the spillover potential of these pathogens into novel host species in which these agents cause disease.

Details

Title: Unexpected Pathogen Diversity Detected in Australian Avifauna Highlights Potential Biosecurity Challenges
Authors: Vasilli Kasimov (Author) - University of the Sunshine Coast, Queensland, School of Science, Technology and Engineering
Michelle Wille (Author) - The University of Sydney
Subir Sarker (Author) - La Trobe University
Yalun Dong (Author) - University of the Sunshine Coast, Queensland, School of Science, Technology and Engineering
Renfu Shao (Author) - University of the Sunshine Coast, Queensland, School of Science, Technology and Engineering
Clancy Hall (Author) - University of the Sunshine Coast, Queensland, School of Science, Technology and Engineering
Dominique Potvin (Author) - University of the Sunshine Coast, Queensland, School of Science, Technology and Engineering
Gabriel Conroy (Author) - University of the Sunshine Coast, Queensland, School of Science, Technology and Engineering
Ludovica Valenza (Author) - Australia Zoo Wildlife Hospital (Australia)
Amber Gillett (Author) - Australia Zoo Wildlife Hospital (Australia)
Peter Timms (Author) - University of the Sunshine Coast, Queensland, Centre for Bioinnovation
Martina Jelocnik (Corresponding Author) - University of the Sunshine Coast, Queensland, Centre for Bioinnovation
Publication details: Viruses, Vol.15(1), pp.1-22
Publisher: MDPI AG
Date published: 2023
DOI: 10.3390/v15010143
ISSN: 1999-4915
PMID: 36680183; PMC9865187
Copyright note: © 2023 by the authors. Licensee MDPI, Basel, Switzerland. This article is an open access article distributed under the terms and conditions of the Creative Commons Attribution (CC BY) license (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/).
Grants: On the brink of infectious disease spill-over: From parrots to horses to humans, DE190100238, Australian Research Council (Australia, Canberra) - ARC
Viruses of a Feather: Investigating prevalence and genetic identity of Beak and Feather disease and Herpes viruses in birds from South-East Queensland, 0980027137, Birds Queensland (Australia)
How ecology shapes the viromes of wild birds, DE200100977, Australian Research Council (Australia, Canberra) - ARC
Characterisation of avian circovirus protein complexes, DE200100367, Australian Research Council (Australia, Canberra) - ARC
Organisation Unit: GeneCology Research Centre - Legacy; Academic Support Unit; School of Science, Technology and Engineering; Centre for Bioinnovation
Language: English
Record Identifier: 99696798502621
Output Type: Journal article

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