Characterization of H5N2 influenza viruses isolated in South Korea and their influence on the emergence of a novel H9N2 influenza virus

We characterized low pathogenic avian influenza (LPAI) H5N2 and H9N2 viruses isolated in South Korea from 2008 to 2009. Genetic analysis of the H5N2 viruses isolated from wild birds and domestic ducks demonstrated that they were related to the recently isolated southern Chinese LPAI H5 viruses and various influenza viruses circulating in Eurasia. Three H9N2 viruses obtained at live bird markets and duck farms were reassortant viruses generated from the H5N2 viruses of domestic ducks and the H9N2 virus endemic in Korean chickens. The H5N2 viruses did not replicate well in experimentally infected chickens and mice, but novel H9N2 viruses, without pre-adaptation, were recovered at high titres in chickens. Our results show that reassortment between H5N2 and H9N2 viruses must have occurred in domestic ducks and may have contributed to the diversity expansion of the gene pool, which has potential to alter the pathogenicity and host range of the influenza virus.