Discovery, Phylogenetic and Comparative genomic analysis of Avian Gammacoronaviruses in wild birds. Avian coronavirus

Wild birds are the natural reservoirs for diverse gammacoronaviruses and deltacoronaviruses but no data for Africa. This project aims to conduct pathogen discovery and surveillance investigations for coronaviruses among other viral etiologic agents including influenza A viruses at the animal-human- environment interface. The project assesses the risk of the interspecies transmission of coronaviruses and the prevalence of coronaviruses in wild birds in KwaZulu-Natal Province in South Africa. Our long-term goal is to monitor the evolution of coronaviruses and understand how coronaviruses spread between different species. The study is essential for the control and prevention of pre-pandemic coronaviruses in both animals and humans. The project aims to reveal the possible genetic and recombination characteristics of coronaviruses in wild birds, emphasizing the critical role of ecologically significant bird species in the cross-species transmission and genetic diversity shaping of coronaviruses, thereby laying a foundational base for future research on pandemic preparedness.