H5N1 Avian virus Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1750 words - 1

H5N1 Avian virus - Essay Example Moreover, this virus also has the ability to undergo antigenic drifts and antigenic shifts. The emergence of new strains of Avian influenza virus is of major public health concern because of the impending threat of a pandemic that it poses. Currently, the virus does not possess the ability of being transmitted amongst humans and it has been postulated that one this quality is acquired it would lead to potentially devastating consequences in the form of a pandemic. Till date, no vaccine for the prevention of H5N1 infection amongst humans exists. Moreover, the treatment options for infection are also limited viz. oseltamivir and zanamivir. Therefore, further research needs to be undertaken in order to develop new vaccines against these organisms and better medications to combat the infection if once contracted. Moreover, vigilant surveillance of outbreaks and epidemics of bird flu is also imperative. Avian Influenza or Bird Flu, as it commonly referred to, is an infection which is caused by the H5N1 virus. The natural hosts of this virus are wild birds, in particular water fowls, who carry these viruses in their intestines while themselves remaining asymptomatic (Auewaraku 404). The transmission of this virus to domesticated birds such as ducks, chickens and turkeys, can lead to outbreaks and epidemics of infection amongst these birds, causing a large number of them to be killed (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention). Recently, H5N1 virus is not only leading to an increasing number of epizootics, but has also been implicated in several epidemics in humans. The mode of transmission of this virus has been described as being feco-oral amongst birds, whereas humans contract the disease via contact with airborne particles from infected poultry or while contact with the poultry or their fecal matter e.g. during food preparation (Fleming 1066). The first human infection with H5N1 was