Hemagglutinin-neuraminidase balance confers respiratory-droplet transmissibility of the pandemic H1N1 influenza virus in ferrets.

ABSTRACT: A novel reassortant derived from North American triple-reassortant (TRsw) and Eurasian swine (EAsw) influenza viruses acquired sustained human-to-human transmissibility and caused the 2009 influenza pandemic. To identify molecular determinants that allowed efficient transmission of the pandemic H1N1 virus among humans, we evaluated the direct-contact and respiratory-droplet transmissibility in ferrets of representative swine influenza viruses of different lineages obtained through a 13-y surveillance program in southern China. Whereas all viruses studied were transmitted by direct contact with varying efficiency, respiratory-droplet transmissibility (albeit inefficient) was observed only in the TRsw-like A/swine/Hong Kong/915/04 (sw915) (H1N2) virus. The sw915 virus had acquired the M gene

SUBMITTER: Yen HL 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC3161546 | biostudies-literature | 2011 Aug

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature