Recent advances in lateral flow devices and point-of-care diagnostics for highly pathogenic avian influenza A viruses

Abstract

There has been a resurgence and ongoing outbreak of avian influenza since early 2024. Avian influenza, caused by influenza A viruses, poses significant threats to both avian populations and public health due to its zoonotic potential. Highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI) virus, such as the H5N1 and H7 subtypes, has a high mortality rate. Traditional detection methods, i.e., virus isolation and reverse transcription quantitative PCR (qRT-PCR), are reliable for diagnosis but time-consuming and labor-intensive. Rapid and accurate detection of avian influenza A viruses is crucial to prevent widespread outbreaks and minimize economic losses. Field-ready and point-of-care (POC) diagnostics, such as lateral flow assays (LFAs) offer a rapid, early, and large-scale approach for detecting avian influenza A virus infections. Early detection in HPAI management is a key factor in improving treatment effectiveness and reducing the negative impact on animal health. This minireview introduces the principles and techniques of current field-ready and POC diagnostics, emphasizing LFAs for HPAI detection. It also outlines and compares their development, applications, and availability in the market. Notably, advanced techniques such as LFAs-integrated clustered regularly interspaced short palindromic repeats (CRISPR) have expanded HPAI diagnostic capabilities and have also been reviewed. CRISPR-based LFAs use guide RNA to detect viral sequences, activating Cas enzymes that generate a visible signal on test strips, enabling a rapid and sensitive detection method. To our knowledge, this is the first comprehensive review summarizing LFA-based HPAI diagnostics in the context of the 2024 resurgence, offering timely insight into their potential roles in outbreak preparedness and response.

Keywords: CRISPR; H5N1; HPAI; avian influenza; lateral flow assay.