Experimental tests for the detection of avian flu virus on cattle and raw milk, with the aim “of producing scientific data useful for a risk assessment and for a precise diagnosis, should any cases similar to those in the United States arise in the national territory”. Following the spread of the highly pathogenic H5N1 influenza virus in farms in the United States, the Experimental Zooprophylactic Institutes of the Veneto (Izsve) and Lombardy and Emilia-Romagna (Izsler), which are part of the Network of Italian Experimental Zooprophylactics, in agreement with the Ministry of Health, have in fact made themselves available to organize experimental tests.
The studies, as stated in a note, “aim to broaden the scope of scientific knowledge currently available and to provide an effective and timely response in the event of a health risk, through validated laboratory methods”. However, at present “there is no evidence of infection, not even previous, in the bovine population in Europe. The circulation of the H5N1 virus in dairy cows has so far been reported only in the United States”. Meanwhile, “in recent weeks the National Reference Centre for Avian Influenza (Crn-Ia) of the Izsve has developed virological and serological tests for the correct diagnosis of infection by the H5N1 Hpai virus in cattle”.
Currently, “the Center is conducting a serological survey to verify whether in the Italian territories where in previous seasons the outbreaks of avian influenza in poultry and wild birds were concentrated, there has been exposure of dairy cattle to the highly pathogenic H5N1 virus, by searching for specific antibodies in their blood”. To date, over 3,200 cattle from the provinces of Verona, Vicenza and Padua have been examined, all with negative results.
The preliminary results of the experimental activity will be communicated in the coming weeks
Analyses conducted in the United States have shown that infection of dairy cattle determines the presence of the virus in the milk produced during the infection. To prevent transmission of the virus to humans, the US authorities have ordered that milk and all derivatives from infected farms be pasteurized. This heat treatment measure of milk is considered suitable for rendering inactive any infectious virus present. In our country, cheeses are also produced from unpasteurized milk, including raw milk aged cheeses, of great importance in the national and international agri-food panorama.
The production process of these cheeses involves a series of steps that, based on numerous studies previously conducted on other microorganisms, appear suitable for eliminating the infectivity of the virus if Italian dairy farms were to become infected. These phases with inactivating power are the initial skimming of the milk, coagulation, cooking and storage of the curd in whey, salting of the cheese and its maturation for many months or even years. In order to provide scientific evidence of the actual ability to adequately reduce the risk of infection, Izsler is conducting experiments to measure the reduction of the virus in the production process of matured raw milk cheeses.
The preliminary results indicate that even with the thermal component of the process alone, a significant reduction in the viral load in milk is achieved. Updates on the preliminary results of animal surveillance and experimental activities on raw milk will be communicated in the coming weeks”, continues the note, reiterating that “on the basis of the information collected so far, the WHO continues to consider the current risk for the human population posed by the H5N1 virus to be low and the risk for people who may be exposed to infected animals, such as farmers, veterinarians and operators in the sector, to be low to moderate”.
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