CIIC:Today's featured article/January 7, 2017

Avian influenza (禽流感), or bird flu for short, is an infectious disease affecting birds including domestic poultry and wild fowl.

It is caused by a Type A influenza virus. Birds affected by the virus will exhibit either mild or severe symptoms. In mild cases the respiratory tract and alimentary canal are affected and the mortality rate is low. In severe cases symptoms are more general and include hemorrhaging and septicemia with high mortality rates. This difference in symptoms is largely determined by the virulence of different strains of the avian influenza virus. (More...)