Circulation and Spillover of pdmH1N1 Influenza A Virus at an Educational Swine Farm in Chile, 2019–2023
Educational farms provide students with hands-on experience in agricultural and animal practices. However, the close contact between humans and farm animals creates a significant interface for zoonotic disease transmission, yet research on infectious diseases in such settings remains limited. This s...
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MDPI AG
2025-04-01
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| author | Soledad Ruiz Constanza Díaz-Gavidia María Antonieta González Pablo Galdames Cristóbal Oyarzún Cecilia Baumberger Camila Rojas Christopher Hamilton-West Bridgett Sharp Shaoyuan Tan Stacey Schultz-Cherry Pedro Jimenez-Bluhm |
| author_facet | Soledad Ruiz Constanza Díaz-Gavidia María Antonieta González Pablo Galdames Cristóbal Oyarzún Cecilia Baumberger Camila Rojas Christopher Hamilton-West Bridgett Sharp Shaoyuan Tan Stacey Schultz-Cherry Pedro Jimenez-Bluhm |
| author_sort | Soledad Ruiz |
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| description | Educational farms provide students with hands-on experience in agricultural and animal practices. However, the close contact between humans and farm animals creates a significant interface for zoonotic disease transmission, yet research on infectious diseases in such settings remains limited. This study investigates the ongoing spillovers of human-origin influenza A virus (IAV) into swine at an educational farm in central Chile, describing IAV prevalence, outbreak dynamics, and the genomic characterization of detected strains. The Menesianos educational farm, located in Melipilla, central Chile, houses approximately 40 swine alongside other domestic animals, such as horses and cows. As part of an active IAV surveillance project, monthly nasal swab samples were collected from pigs between June 2019 and September 2023 for IAV detection via RT-qPCR targeting the M gene, with positive samples subsequently sequenced. During the study period, monthly IAV prevalence ranged from 0% to 52.5%, with a notable outbreak detected between May and June 2023. The outbreak lasted 5 weeks, peaking at 52.5% prevalence during week 3. Nine IAV strains were isolated over the study period, eight of which were obtained during weeks 2 and 3 of the outbreak. Phylogenetic analysis revealed that all strains were closely related to the pandemic H1N1 2009 influenza virus, with the closest related strains being those circulating in humans in Chile during the same years. These findings highlight the importance of conducting regular IAV surveillance on educational farms, where close interactions between animals and individuals—particularly children and young people—can facilitate viral spillovers and potential reverse zoonosis events. |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-0ae2ab3ebabe4f24aa7268d77dd609fe |
| institution | OA Journals |
| issn | 1999-4915 |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2025-04-01 |
| publisher | MDPI AG |
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| series | Viruses |
| spelling | doaj-art-0ae2ab3ebabe4f24aa7268d77dd609fe2025-08-20T02:34:02ZengMDPI AGViruses1999-49152025-04-0117563510.3390/v17050635Circulation and Spillover of pdmH1N1 Influenza A Virus at an Educational Swine Farm in Chile, 2019–2023Soledad Ruiz0Constanza Díaz-Gavidia1María Antonieta González2Pablo Galdames3Cristóbal Oyarzún4Cecilia Baumberger5Camila Rojas6Christopher Hamilton-West7Bridgett Sharp8Shaoyuan Tan9Stacey Schultz-Cherry10Pedro Jimenez-Bluhm11Escuela de Medicina Veterinaria, Facultad de Recursos Naturales y Medicina Veterinaria, Universidad Santo Tomás, Santiago 8370003, ChileEscuela de Medicina Veterinaria, Facultad de Medicina, Facultad de Ciencias Biológicas, y Facultad de Agronomía y Sistemas Naturales, Pontificia Universidad Católica de Chile, Santiago 7820436, ChileEscuela de Medicina Veterinaria, Facultad de Medicina, Facultad de Ciencias Biológicas, y Facultad de Agronomía y Sistemas Naturales, Pontificia Universidad Católica de Chile, Santiago 7820436, ChileDepartamento de Medicina Preventiva Animal, Facultad de Ciencias Veterinarias y Pecuarias, Universidad de Chile, Santiago 8820000, ChileEscuela de Medicina Veterinaria, Facultad de Medicina, Facultad de Ciencias Biológicas, y Facultad de Agronomía y Sistemas Naturales, Pontificia Universidad Católica de Chile, Santiago 7820436, ChileDepartamento de Medicina Preventiva Animal, Facultad de Ciencias Veterinarias y Pecuarias, Universidad de Chile, Santiago 8820000, ChileDepartamento de Medicina Preventiva Animal, Facultad de Ciencias Veterinarias y Pecuarias, Universidad de Chile, Santiago 8820000, ChileDepartamento de Medicina Preventiva Animal, Facultad de Ciencias Veterinarias y Pecuarias, Universidad de Chile, Santiago 8820000, ChileHost-Microbe Interactions, St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital, Memphis, TN 38105, USAHost-Microbe Interactions, St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital, Memphis, TN 38105, USAHost-Microbe Interactions, St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital, Memphis, TN 38105, USAEscuela de Medicina Veterinaria, Facultad de Medicina, Facultad de Ciencias Biológicas, y Facultad de Agronomía y Sistemas Naturales, Pontificia Universidad Católica de Chile, Santiago 7820436, ChileEducational farms provide students with hands-on experience in agricultural and animal practices. However, the close contact between humans and farm animals creates a significant interface for zoonotic disease transmission, yet research on infectious diseases in such settings remains limited. This study investigates the ongoing spillovers of human-origin influenza A virus (IAV) into swine at an educational farm in central Chile, describing IAV prevalence, outbreak dynamics, and the genomic characterization of detected strains. The Menesianos educational farm, located in Melipilla, central Chile, houses approximately 40 swine alongside other domestic animals, such as horses and cows. As part of an active IAV surveillance project, monthly nasal swab samples were collected from pigs between June 2019 and September 2023 for IAV detection via RT-qPCR targeting the M gene, with positive samples subsequently sequenced. During the study period, monthly IAV prevalence ranged from 0% to 52.5%, with a notable outbreak detected between May and June 2023. The outbreak lasted 5 weeks, peaking at 52.5% prevalence during week 3. Nine IAV strains were isolated over the study period, eight of which were obtained during weeks 2 and 3 of the outbreak. Phylogenetic analysis revealed that all strains were closely related to the pandemic H1N1 2009 influenza virus, with the closest related strains being those circulating in humans in Chile during the same years. These findings highlight the importance of conducting regular IAV surveillance on educational farms, where close interactions between animals and individuals—particularly children and young people—can facilitate viral spillovers and potential reverse zoonosis events.https://www.mdpi.com/1999-4915/17/5/635zoonotic transmissioninfluenza A viruseducational farmsswine surveillancereverse zoonosis |
| spellingShingle | Soledad Ruiz Constanza Díaz-Gavidia María Antonieta González Pablo Galdames Cristóbal Oyarzún Cecilia Baumberger Camila Rojas Christopher Hamilton-West Bridgett Sharp Shaoyuan Tan Stacey Schultz-Cherry Pedro Jimenez-Bluhm Circulation and Spillover of pdmH1N1 Influenza A Virus at an Educational Swine Farm in Chile, 2019–2023 Viruses zoonotic transmission influenza A virus educational farms swine surveillance reverse zoonosis |
| title | Circulation and Spillover of pdmH1N1 Influenza A Virus at an Educational Swine Farm in Chile, 2019–2023 |
| title_full | Circulation and Spillover of pdmH1N1 Influenza A Virus at an Educational Swine Farm in Chile, 2019–2023 |
| title_fullStr | Circulation and Spillover of pdmH1N1 Influenza A Virus at an Educational Swine Farm in Chile, 2019–2023 |
| title_full_unstemmed | Circulation and Spillover of pdmH1N1 Influenza A Virus at an Educational Swine Farm in Chile, 2019–2023 |
| title_short | Circulation and Spillover of pdmH1N1 Influenza A Virus at an Educational Swine Farm in Chile, 2019–2023 |
| title_sort | circulation and spillover of pdmh1n1 influenza a virus at an educational swine farm in chile 2019 2023 |
| topic | zoonotic transmission influenza A virus educational farms swine surveillance reverse zoonosis |
| url | https://www.mdpi.com/1999-4915/17/5/635 |
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