Analysis of Coinfections with A/H1N1 Strain Variants among Pigs in Poland by Multitemperature Single-Strand Conformational Polymorphism

Abstract

Monitoring and control of infections are key parts of surveillance systems and epidemiological risk prevention. In the case of influenza A viruses (IAVs), which show high variability, a wide range of hosts, and a potential of reassortment between different strains, it is essential to study not only people, but also animals living in the immediate surroundings. If understated, the animals might become a source of newly formed infectious strains with a pandemic potential. Special attention should be focused on pigs, because of the receptors specific for virus strains originating from different species, localized in their respiratory tract. Pigs are prone to mixed infections and may constitute a reservoir of potentially dangerous IAV strains resulting from genetic reassortment. It has been reported that a quadruple reassortant, A(H1N1)pdm09, can be easily transmitted from humans to pigs and serve as a donor of genetic segments for new strains capable of infecting humans. Therefore, it is highly desirable to develop a simple, cost-effective, and rapid method for evaluation of IAV genetic variability. We describe a method based on multitemperature single-strand conformational polymorphism (MSSCP), using a fragment of the hemagglutinin (HA) gene, for detection of coinfections and differentiation of genetic variants of the virus, difficult to identify by conventional diagnostic.