The avian influenza virus, known for its highly contagious nature and deadly effects on poultry, is capable of infecting mammals. While the virus is ill-adapted to infect humans at the moment, mutations may change the virus to infect more mammals, and ultimately, humans. Here’s a rundown of how the avian flu is affecting not only our health but society as a whole.

Known more commonly as “bird flu”, avian influenza has the potential to infect both wild bird populations and domesticated poultry. In 2022, an avian flu outbreak in the U.S. killed over 52 million birds, including both domesticated and wild birds. The virus is highly contagious, spreading quickly via surface contamination or direct contact with infected poultry.

“Some birds have died from the disease itself, but the vast majority are being culled through flock “depopulation,” to try to stop the virus from spreading,” said correspondent and editor Bill Chappell from NPR. In an attempt to prevent the further spread of the disease, many chicken farms have had to purge their chicken populations, resulting in millions of bird deaths nationwide.

The bird flu led to a decrease in hen population, and as a result, slower egg production created an imbalance in the supply and demand of eggs. 

“I volunteer and bake cookies for a charity, and I’ve noticed the prices for ingredients are definitely getting more expensive,” said freshman Ellie Wu.

Combined with the skyrocketing inflation levels in the U.S. economy, egg prices have nearly tripled in price as of 2023. This has led to increases in prices of egg-containing products in grocery stores and restaurants, with groceries rising 12% in prices and restaurant meals peaking at 8%. 

“Since I eat eggs almost every day, [the egg crisis] has been a bit of a disappointment,” said freshman Acer Dong. “Inflation is hitting home.”

Consequently, many people are searching for cheaper ways to obtain eggs. In particular, Americans are evading egg prices by purchasing their own backyard chickens.

Suzanne Chandler, who sells chicks at Flower Feather Farm, says the demand for chicks “is up 300% from January…[and] January is usually kind of a slow month.”

In the rush to raise their own flock, people overlook the risks of disease that come with the chicks. Although the avian flu has not become a human pathogen yet, it is still possible for a human to become infected with the virus; plus, the bird flu isn’t the only disease spread by chickens. Salmonella is easily spread to humans and is quite common among chicks.

To study mutations in bird flu, scientists have experimented with the virus to outline the different “steps” that the avian influenza would need to take to mutate into a human virus.

First, scientists identified the polymerase PB2 that replicates RNA in the virus. Modifications to the enzyme known as E627K swap an amino acid and result in an enzyme being better fitted to mammalian cells.

“But for H5N1 to cause a pandemic it also needs multiple changes in hemagglutinin, a protein on the surface of the virus that helps it attach to carbohydrates on host cells,” said Kai Kupferschmidt. 

These changes would allow the avian influenza virus to transmit through the air while keeping the hemagglutinin in a stable form, and it would reshape the protein to bind to human cells.

Although the avian flu is far from becoming a human virus, each new case brings it closer and closer to the right combination of mutations. Bird flu became pertinent to our society in 2022, and though the worst of the outbreak is over, the more information we can learn about the virus, the better prepared we will be if it ever mutates into a human pathogen.

Photo by Morgane Perraud