ArticleOpen veterinary journal2026
Emergence of novel highly pathogenic H5N1 avian influenza in slender-billed gulls (
Article in Open veterinary journal, 2026. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Not yet cited in PubMed.
What it found
Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.
The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.
Who cites it
0 citing papers in PubMed.
No citing paper in PubMed yet.
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
6 authors.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
Background: Highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI) H5N1 continues to cause severe mortality among wild birds globally. Aim: The present study aimed to investigate the mass mortality in Slender-billed Gulls ( Methods: Field monitoring was conducted at breeding colonies, and dead carcasses were collected for necropsy, histopathology, and molecular analysis. Virus detection and genetic characterization were performed by reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction and sequencing. In addition, the viral lineage was inferred by phylogenetic analysis of the hemagglutinin (HA) and neuraminidase (NA) genes. Results: More than 3,200 gulls and terns were found dead, exhibiting severe neurological signs and systemic illness. Necropsy and histopathological investigations indicated significant multi-organ damage, with gulls showing more pronounced visceral lesions than terns, while terns exhibited greater neurological damage. Molecular characterization confirmed the virus as HPAI H5N1, and analysis of the HA and NA genes revealed that the strain from Dukan Lake falls within clade 2.3.4.4b, displaying a high genetic resemblance (>98%) with the recently identified H5N1 strain isolated from Mute swans in Kazakhstan. The virus showed multibasic cleavage sites characteristic of high pathogenicity but maintained receptor-binding specificity for avian hosts. Moreover, the results demonstrate the recent introduction of the virus via migratory flyways and the significance of gulls and terns in the disease ecology of HPAI virus (HPAIV). Conclusion: This outbreak is the first recorded mass mortality of gulls and terns due to HPAI H5N1 in Iraq. The results emphasize the need for improved surveillance at migratory stopover and breeding sites to observe viral evolution, host susceptibility, and potential risks for cross-species transmission.
Indexed as
Identifiers
What OpenQuestion holds
Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.