Abstract
Raccoons (Procyon lotor) are common, widely distributed animals that frequently come into contact with wild waterfowl, agricultural operations, and humans. Serosurveys showed that raccoons are exposed to avian influenza virus. We found antibodies to a variety of influenza virus subtypes (H10N7, H4N6, H4N2, H3, and H1) with wide geographic variation in seroprevalence. Experimental infection studies showed that raccoons become infected with avian and human influenza A viruses, shed and transmit virus to virus-free animals, and seroconvert. Analyses of cellular receptors showed that raccoons have avian and human type receptors with a similar distribution as found in human respiratory tracts. The potential exists for co-infection of multiple subtypes of influenza virus with genetic reassortment and creation of novel strains of influenza virus. Experimental and field data indicate that raccoons may play an important role in influenza disease ecology and pose risks to agriculture and human health.
Highlights
Raccoons (Procyon lotor) are common, widely distributed animals that frequently come into contact with wild waterfowl, agricultural operations, and humans
Knowledge of the roles of wild birds and mammals in the epidemiology of the disease and how viral reassortants and variants arise are critical for the planning and preparation of future pandemics, vaccine development, and meaningful human health and agricultural risk assessments [9,10]
Other than a survey of small rodents in Pennsylvania, New Jersey, Maryland, and Virginia after an outbreak of influenza caused by virus subtype H5N2 in 1983–84 [11], no systematic investigation of wild mammals in influenza disease ecology has been performed
Summary
Raccoons (Procyon lotor) are common, widely distributed animals that frequently come into contact with wild waterfowl, agricultural operations, and humans. Swine are considered important intermediate hosts between birds and humans because they are frequently infected by avian and human influenza viruses [3] This finding underscores the potential for genetic reassortment that can create new, possibly more virulent subtypes. Ample opportunities exist for free-ranging wild mammals to be exposed to AI by contact with waterfowl and their environment Many of these species are highly mobile and have large home ranges that can include agricultural operations, wetlands, and human residences. No studies have systematically examined wild mammalian species, peridomestic mammals, for exposure to AI, their ability to become infected, and their reassortment potential This knowledge is critical for accurate risk assessments of low pathogenic and highly pathogenic AI to agriculture and human health
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