EPPIcenter Seminar: Louise Moncla- Reconstructing the ecology and evolution of highly pathogenic avian influenza viruses in North America

Louise Moncla, University of Pennsylvania, will give a seminar "Reconstructing the ecology and evolution of highly pathogenic avian influenza viruses in North America".

Since 2022, highly pathogenic H5N1 viruses have caused a panzootic in the Americas that caused wild bird die-offs, recurring agricultural outbreaks, and 70 human spillover infections. Unlike past outbreaks, infections have been observed across a broad range of wild birds and mammals, and aggressive culling has not halted spread. I will present work in which we used phylodynamic approaches to trace the origins and spread of these viruses in North America, and high-resolution sequencing to trace the within-host evolution and local-scale transmission of these viruses in wild and domestic birds. Our results indicate that the panzootic was driven by repeated cross-continental incursions followed by rapid spread by migrating wildlife, which support high diversity. These findings have implications for risk assessment and long-term management.

Join us at the EPPIcenter: 499 Illinois St, 2nd floor, Treasure Island conference room or on Zoom