Hon Ip
Hon Ip is a Diagnostic and Research Virologist at the National Wildlife Health Center.
As a Diagnostic and Research Virologist, I am interested in the emergence and spread of novel, introduced, and endemic viral diseases of wildlife. For example, through the National Wildlife Health Center’s long-standing program to investigate wildlife mortality events in the United States, our Diagnostic Virology Laboratory was first to detect introductions of West Nile Virus (in 1999) and Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza H5N8 (in 2014). Both of these introductions resulted in large-scale monitoring efforts that provided real-time and actionable intelligence to state and federal partners for disease response. We have also investigated periodic recurrence of Newcastle Disease in cormorants, geographic expansion of Eurasian collared doves and associated spread of pigeon paramyxovirus, and applied phylogenetic approaches to understand the diversity and transmission of viral diseases on the landscape. Since 2008 we have been studying viruses in North American bats, including coronaviruses. Following the recent emergence of COVID-19, this work provides a highly relevant framework for investigating possible impacts of the SARS-CoV-2 virus on native, North American bat species, and for more broadly characterizing the diversity of coronaviruses in North American wildlife.
Professional Experience
Diagnostic and Research Virologist at the National Wildlife Health Center
Education and Certifications
Ph. D. Molecular Parasitology. The Rockefeller University, New York, NY.
M. Sc. Microbiology and Parasitology. University of Toronto, Ontario, Canada.
B. Sc. Microbiology and Parasitology. University of Toronto, Ontario, Canada.
Affiliations and Memberships*
Honorary Associate Fellow. Department of Pathobiological Sciences, School of Veterinary Medicine, University of Wisconsin-Madison.
Adjunct Assistant Professor. Department of Population Health Sciences, School of Medicine and Public Health, University of Wisconsin-Madison.
Science and Products
Interlaboratory comparison of SARS-CoV2 molecular detection assays in use by U.S. veterinary diagnostic laboratories
Pathology of Lagovirus europaeus GI.2/RHDV2/b (rabbit hemorrhagic disease virus 2) in native North American lagomorphs
Emergence and molecular characterization of pigeon Paramyxovirus-1 in non-native Eurasian collared doves (Streptopelia decaocto) in California, USA
SARS-CoV-2 exposure in escaped mink, Utah, USA
Quarterly wildlife mortality report January 2021
Experimental challenge of a North American bat species, big brown bat (Eptesicus fuscus), with SARS-CoV-2
Investigation of the 2018 thick-billed murre (Uria lomvia) die-off on St. Lawrence Island rules out food shortage as the cause
Possibility for reverse zoonotic transmission of SARS-CoV-2 to free-ranging wildlife: A case study of bats
Genesis and spread of multiple reassortants during the 2016/2017 H5 avian influenza epidemic in Eurasia
Detection of SARS-CoV-2 by RNAscope® in situ hybridization and immunohistochemistry techniques
Inactivation of viable surrogates for the select agents virulent Newcastle disease virus and highly pathogenic avian influenza virus using either commercial lysis buffer or heat
Artificial intelligence and avian influenza: Using machine learning to enhance active surveillance for avian influenza viruses
Science and Products
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Interlaboratory comparison of SARS-CoV2 molecular detection assays in use by U.S. veterinary diagnostic laboratories
The continued search for intermediate hosts and potential reservoirs for SARS-CoV2 makes it clear that animal surveillance is critical in outbreak response and prevention. Real-time RT-PCR assays for SARS-CoV2 detection can easily be adapted to different host species. U.S. veterinary diagnostic laboratories have used the CDC assays or other national reference laboratory methods to test animal sampAuthorsKaiping Deng, Steffen Uhlig, Hon S. Ip, Mary Lea Killian, Laura Goodman, Sarah Nemser, Jodie Ulaszek, Shannon Pickens, Robert Newkirk, Matthew Kmet, Kirsten Frost, Karina Hettwer, Bertrand Colson, Kapil Nichani, Anja Schlier, Andriy Tkachenko, Ravinder Reddy, Renate ReimshuesselPathology of Lagovirus europaeus GI.2/RHDV2/b (rabbit hemorrhagic disease virus 2) in native North American lagomorphs
Rabbit hemorrhagic disease, a notifiable foreign animal disease in the US, was reported for the first time in wild native North American lagomorphs in April 2020 in the southwestern US. Affected species included the desert cottontail (Sylvilagus audubonii), mountain cottontail (Sylvilagus nuttallii), black-tailed jackrabbit (Lepus californicus), and antelope jackrabbit (Lepus alleni). Desert cottoAuthorsJulia S. Lankton, Susan Knowles, Saskia Keller, Valerie I. Shearn-Bochsler, Hon S. IpEmergence and molecular characterization of pigeon Paramyxovirus-1 in non-native Eurasian collared doves (Streptopelia decaocto) in California, USA
Eurasian collared doves (Streptopelia decaocto) were introduced into Florida in the 1980s and have since established populations throughout the continental United States. Pigeon paramyxovirus-1 (PPMV-1), a species-adapted genotype VI Avian orthoavulavirus 1, has caused periodic outbreaks among collared doves in the U.S. since 2001 with outbreaks occasionally involving native doves. In California,AuthorsKrysta Rogers, Ash Mete, Hon S. Ip, Mia K. Torchetti, Mary L. Killian, Beate CrossleySARS-CoV-2 exposure in escaped mink, Utah, USA
In August 2020, outbreaks of coronavirus disease were confirmed on mink farms in Utah, USA. We surveyed mammals captured on and around farms for evidence of infection or exposure. Free-ranging mink, presumed domestic escapees, exhibited high antibody titers, suggesting a potential severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 transmission pathway to native wildlife.AuthorsSusan A. Shriner, Jeremeny E. Ellis, J. Jeffrey Root, Annette Roug, Scott R. Stopak, Gerald W. Wiscomb, Jared R. Zierenberg, Hon S. Ip, Mia K. Torchetti, Thomas J. DeLibertoQuarterly wildlife mortality report January 2021
The USGS National Wildlife Health Center (NWHC) Quarterly Mortality Report provides brief summaries of epizootic mortality and morbidity events by quarter. The write-ups, highlighting epizootic events and other wildlife disease topics of interest, are published in the Wildlife Disease Association quarterly newsletter. A link is provided in this WDA newsletter to the Wildlife Health Information ShaAuthorsBryan J. Richards, Barbara Bodenstein, Daniel A. Grear, Hon S. Ip, Anne Ballmann, Julia S. Lankton, Valerie I. Shearn-BochslerExperimental challenge of a North American bat species, big brown bat (Eptesicus fuscus), with SARS-CoV-2
The recently emerged novel coronavirus, SARS‐CoV‐2, is phylogenetically related to bat coronaviruses (CoVs), specifically SARS‐related CoVs from the Eurasian bat family Rhinolophidae. As this human pandemic virus has spread across the world, the potential impacts of SARS‐CoV‐2 on native North American bat populations are unknown, as is the ability of North American bats to serve as reservoirs or iAuthorsJeffrey S. Hall, Susan Knowles, Sean Nashold, Hon S. Ip, Ariel Elizabeth Leon, Tonie E. Rocke, Saskia Annatina Keller, Mariano Carossino, Udeni B.R. Balasuriya, Erik K. HofmeisterInvestigation of the 2018 thick-billed murre (Uria lomvia) die-off on St. Lawrence Island rules out food shortage as the cause
Die-offs of seabirds in Alaska have occurred with increased frequency since 2015. In 2018, on St. Lawrence Island, seabirds were reported washing up dead on beaches starting in late May, peaking in June, and continuing until early August. The cause of death was documented to be starvation, leading to the conclusion that a severe food shortage was to blame. We use physiology and colony-based observAuthorsAlexis Will, Jean-Baptiste Thiebot, Hon S. Ip, Panguk Shoogukwruk, Morgan Annogiyuk, Akinori Takahashi, Valerie I. Shearn-Bochsler, Mary-Lea Killian, Mia Kim Torchetti, Alexander KitayskyPossibility for reverse zoonotic transmission of SARS-CoV-2 to free-ranging wildlife: A case study of bats
The COVID-19 pandemic highlights the substantial public health, economic, and societal consequences of virus spillover from a wildlife reservoir. Widespread human transmission of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) also presents a new set of challenges when considering viral spillover from people to naïve wildlife and other animal populations. The establishment of new wildAuthorsKevin J. Olival, Paul M. Cryan, Brian R. Amman, Ralph S. Baric, David S. Blehert, Cara E. Brook, Charles H. Calisher, Kevin T. Castle, Jeremy T. H. Coleman, Peter Daszak, Jonathan H. Epstein, Hume Field, Winifred F. Frick, Amy T. Gilbert, David T. S. Hayman, Hon S. Ip, William B Karesh, Christine K. Johnson, Rebekah C. Kading, Tigga Kingston, Jeffrey M. Lorch, Ian H. Mendenhall, Alison J. Peel, Kendra L. Phelps, Raina K. Plowright, DeeAnn M. Reeder, Jonathan D. Reichard, Jonathan M. Sleeman, Daniel G. Streicker, Jonathan S. Towner, Lin-Fa WangGenesis and spread of multiple reassortants during the 2016/2017 H5 avian influenza epidemic in Eurasia
Highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI) viruses of the H5 A/goose/Guangdong/1/96 lineage can cause severe disease in poultry and wild birds, and occasionally in humans. In recent years, H5 HPAI viruses of this lineage infecting poultry in Asia have spilled over into wild birds and spread via bird migration to countries in Europe, Africa, and North America. In 2016/2017, this spillover resulted inAuthorsSamantha Lycett, Anne Pohlmann, Christoph Staubach, Valentina Caliendo, Mark Woolhouse, Martin Beer, Thijs Kuiken, Steven van Borm, Andrew Breed, Francois-Xavier Briand, Ian Brown, Adam Dan, Thomas J. DeLiberto, Sophie von Dobschuetz, Ron A. M. Fouchier, Marius Gilbert, Sarah Hill, Charlotte Kristiane Hjulsager, Hon S. Ip, Marion Koopmans, Lars Erik Larsen, Dong-Hun Lee, Mahmoud Mohamed Naguib, I. Monne, Oliver Pybus, Andrew M. Ramey, Vladmir Savic, Kirill Sharshov, Alexander Shestopalov, Chang-Seon Song, Mieke Steensels, David Swayne, Edyta Swieton, Xiu-Feng Wan, Siamak ZohariDetection of SARS-CoV-2 by RNAscope® in situ hybridization and immunohistochemistry techniques
In situ hybridization (ISH) and immunohistochemistry (IHC) are essential tools to characterize SARS-CoV-2 infection and tropism in naturally and experimentally infected animals and also for diagnostic purposes. Here, we describe three RNAscope®-based ISH assays targeting the ORF1ab, spike, and nucleocapsid genes and IHC assays targeting the spike and nucleocapsid proteins of SARS-CoV-2.AuthorsMariano Carossino, Hon S. Ip, Jürgen a. Richt, Kendra Schultz, Kimberly Harper, Alan T. Loynachan, Fabio Del Piero, Udeni B.R. BalasuriyaInactivation of viable surrogates for the select agents virulent Newcastle disease virus and highly pathogenic avian influenza virus using either commercial lysis buffer or heat
Introduction:Federal Select Agent Program regulations require laboratories to document a validated procedure for inactivating select agents prior to movement outside registered space. Avian influenza viruses and virulent Newcastle disease virus (vNDV) are cultured in chicken amnio-allantoic fluid (AAF), but the efficacy of commercial lysis buffers to inactivate viruses in protein-rich media has noAuthorsKatrina E. Alger, Hon S. Ip, Jeffrey S. Hall, Sean Nashold, Katherine Richgels, Carrie Alison SmithArtificial intelligence and avian influenza: Using machine learning to enhance active surveillance for avian influenza viruses
Influenza A viruses are one of the most significant viral groups globally with substantial impacts on human, domestic animal and wildlife health. Wild birds are the natural reservoirs for these viruses, and active surveillance within wild bird populations provides critical information about viral evolution forming the basis of risk assessments and countermeasure development. Unfortunately, activeAuthorsDaniel P. Walsh, Ting Fung Ma, Hon S. Ip, Jun Zhu - News
*Disclaimer: Listing outside positions with professional scientific organizations on this Staff Profile are for informational purposes only and do not constitute an endorsement of those professional scientific organizations or their activities by the USGS, Department of the Interior, or U.S. Government