[A/H13 and A/H16 influenza viruses: different lines of one precursors]

Analysis of the data of annual (1980-2005) monitorings of influenza A viruses in the North Caspian Sea basin and the Volga river delta, as well as the primary hemagglutinin structure of isolates of different years revealed the circulation of A/H13 and A/H16 viruses among gulls since 1976. Phylogenetic analysis revealed 3 significantly different evolutionary lines: an American line, a European line, and a line comprising the isolates from America and Eurasia. The H13N6 and H16N3 viruses isolated in Russia replicated in the respiratory and intestinal tracts of ducks and induced the production of antibodies; the H16N3 viruses induced the antibodies neutralizing viruses of subtype H16 only. The use of glycoconjugate polymers showed that the receptor phenotype of the study H16 viruses differed from that of the H13 viruses in its capacity to bind to 3'SL with a higher affinity than alphaNANA. The comparative phylogenetic analysis suggests the existence of the common precursor of H13 and H16 viruses and their further evolution in relation to environmental conditions, including their adaptation to a new host.