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Journal of Integrative Agriculture  2026, Vol. 25 Issue (11): 4784-4787    DOI: 10.1016/j.jia.2025.12.043
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Genetic diversity of H13 avian influenza viruses in migratory shorebirds in eastern China

Mengdi Guan1*, Wenxi Li1*, Wenjun Shi2*, Mengjing Wang1, Lili Liu1, Yujiao Xie1, Huihui Kong3, Yujie Li4, Hongke Xu1, Mingfeng Liu1, Xuan Yang1, Zhanshuai Li1, Anran Ren1, Jing Guo1#, Xuyong Li1#

1 College of Agriculture and Biology, Liaocheng University, Liaocheng 252000, China

2 Technology Center of Qindao Customs, Qingdao 266000, China

3 State Key Laboratory for Animal Disease Control and Prevention, Harbin Veterinary Research Institute, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Harbin 150069, China

4 Shandong Provincial Center for Animal Disease Control, Jinan 250100, China

 Highlights 
● Twenty-one H13 subtype avian influenza viruses were isolated from 50,016 samples in migratory birds during 2017 to 2024 in Shandong Province, China.
● The H13 viruses were mainly harbored by shorebirds (gulls) and exhibited considerable genetic diversity.
● Extensive gene segment reassortment between H13/H16 like viruses and other subtypes were observed.
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摘要  

H13亚型禽流感病毒的主要宿主是水鸟,家禽和哺乳动物中鲜有发现,目前对其流行病学动态及遗传特征的认知仍较为欠缺。为填补这一研究空白,本研究于2017-2024年在我国山东省主要候鸟栖息地开展了系统性的主动监测,累计采集50016份候鸟样本,共分离到21株H13亚型禽流感病毒(19株H13N6、2株H13N8)。所有H13亚型病毒均发现于2021-2024年的春、秋迁徙季,且绝大多数源自鸥类。贝叶斯系统发育分析显示,21株病毒HA基因分属欧亚谱系和北美-欧亚谱系,而N6与N8基因则均聚类于欧亚谱系。本研究还发现H13/H16-like病毒存在广泛的基因重配现象,如其内部基因片段参与到高致病性H5N1毒株的形成,部分毒株的基因与感染人类的H10N5亚型病毒基因具有高度同源性。此外,H13病毒在小鼠体内复制能力较差,表明其公共卫生风险较低。本研究深化了对H13亚型禽流感病毒全球流行特征、地理分布、宿主范围及系统发育多样性的认知,同时也凸显了针对迁徙鸟类开展持续性监测的必要性。



Received: 22 October 2025   Accepted: 10 December 2025 Online: 22 December 2025  
Fund: 

This work was supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (32202798 and 32570621) and the “Unveiling and Commanding” of General Administration of Customs of China (2024HK306).

About author:  #Correspondence Xuyong Li, E-mail: lixuyong@lcu.edu.cn; Jing Guo, E-mail: guojing@lcu.edu.cn * These authors contributed equally to this study.

Cite this article: 

Mengdi Guan, Wenxi Li, Wenjun Shi, Mengjing Wang, Lili Liu, Yujiao Xie, Huihui Kong, Yujie Li, Hongke Xu, Mingfeng Liu, Xuan Yang, Zhanshuai Li, Anran Ren, Jing Guo, Xuyong Li. 2026. Genetic diversity of H13 avian influenza viruses in migratory shorebirds in eastern China. Journal of Integrative Agriculture, 25(11): 4784-4787.

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