Research reveals that avian influenza can be eradicated by editing chicken genes

Recent advances in gene editing technology could be used to create disease-resistant animals. This could help curb the spread of avian influenza, commonly known as avian influenza.

recently gene editing Research published in nature communications, my colleagues and I introduced the potential of gene editing to protect chickens from the threat of avian influenza. This disease is caused by an ever-evolving virus that infects many viruses. biosecurity Measures include good hygiene, restriction of bird movement, surveillance with appropriate testing, and selective removal of infected birds.

Breakthroughs in gene editing could help stem the huge economic losses currently being incurred from bird flu outbreaks. It would also be an important step in controlling diseases that can cause serious illness and death in humans.

Why is avian influenza management important?

Amount of damage caused by avian influenza outbreak around the world billions of dollars At a loss.The U.S. Department of Agriculture up to 50 million birds died of avian influenza in 2022. The South African Poultry Association recently stated: 7 million The chickens were culled after the outbreak was confirmed in early 2023.

Beyond the economic impact, avian influenza outbreaks also pose risks such as: human health.

Before the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic, avian influenza was thought to have the potential to trigger a devastating human pandemic. This prompted international scrutiny. world animal health organization, who And that Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations.

That fear is well-founded, 3 influenza pandemics 20th century 1918 influenza pandemic Tens of millions of bird-derived lives have been claimed.

There are limits to what vaccinations can do.

Vaccination is the primary method to prevent outbreaks of avian influenza in chickens.

However, because avian influenza viruses evolve rapidly, the effectiveness of vaccines is limited. This makes existing vaccines less effective over time. Additionally, although there are multiple strains of the avian influenza virus, vaccines are only effective against specific strains.

must match vaccine Prevalent strains cause outbreaks. Vaccine use may also involve significant costs and practical hurdles to distribution.

Gene editing to improve animal welfare

In contrast to vaccination, gene editing targets a protein in the chicken that is essential for all types of avian influenza, effectively stopping the virus from progressing.

Gene editing refers to the process of introducing precise changes to specific genes in an animal. Features Properties that increase resistance to certain diseases, increased productivity, and animal welfare.

Beneficial genetic changes introduced into an animal using gene editing may have already occurred naturally in another animal.

For example, gene editing was used to make dairy cows hornless. genetic changes Found in naturally hornless cows. This is important because many dairy cows have horns that result in painful behavior. sharpen the corner Reduces the risk of injury to calves and farmers.

It is important not to confuse gene editing with genetic modification, which involves transferring genes from one species to another. This distinction is necessary for regulatory purposes, especially in view of the challenges faced by older genetic modification technologies. strict regulations Its development is hindered in many countries.

To produce gene-edited chickens in our study, we used powerful molecular scissors known as . CRISPR/Cas9 This is to perform single gene editing. Our target was ANP32A protein contained in chicken.

Compared to conventional chickens hatched at the same time, these gene-edited chickens reached maturity without any noticeable negative effects on their health or well-being.

To test for resistance, gene-edited chickens were exposed to low doses of avian influenza virus. Remarkably, 9 out of 10 of his birds were completely resistant and no other chickens were infected.

In a more ambitious step, we inoculated gene-edited chickens with an unnaturally high dose of the virus (1,000 times the lower dose). This time, five of the 10 gene-edited chickens inoculated became infected.

We also found that avian influenza viruses can be adapted to use the edited ANP32A protein and two related proteins.ANP32B and ANP32E. However, through experiments in cells, we demonstrated that editing all three proteins simultaneously can completely suppress the virus.

What’s next?

Ongoing research aims to identify the specific combination of gene edits needed to create the next generation of gene-edited chickens that will provide complete and durable protection against avian influenza.

Gene editing should be considered an essential tool to prevent and control deadly animal diseases.

supportive government regulations We need to accelerate the development of gene editing to improve animal health and welfare.

The potential of disease-resistant animals to protect global food security and public health is a compelling reason to pursue this innovative path in biotechnology.