Hepatitis E virus in sympatric cattle and wild ungulates in the Doñana National Park, Spain
Poster presented in HEV2018 Hepatitis E: Paradigm of a food-borne zoonotic emerging disease in Europe
June 4th, 2018
Caballero J., Garcia-Bocanegra I., Jimenez-Ruiz S., Vicente J., Rivero A., Risalde MA., Barasona JA., Lopez Lopez P. and Rivero Juarez A.
Hepatitis E (HE) is an emerging and mainly foodborne disease in industrialized countries of Public Health concern. Although domestic pigs and wild boar are considered the main reservoir of zoonotic HE virus (HEV) genotypes, information about the role of other animal species is still very scarce. Here, we aimed to assess HEV circulation in sympatric domestic and wild ungulates in the Doñana National Park (DNP), Spain. Blood samples from 439 ungulates, including 137 cattle (Bos taurus), 101 red deer (Cervus elaphus), 102 fallow deer (Dama dama) and 99 wild boar (Sus scrofa) were collected in the DNP during 2015. Sera were analyzed in parallel using an indirect ELISA and real time RT-PCR. A total of 59 of the 439 (13.4%; CI95%: 10.3-16.6%) tested animals had antibodies against HEV. By species, the seroprevalence was 12.4 5.5% in cattle (17/137), 29.7 8.9% in red deer (30/101), 1 1.9% in fallow deer (1/102) and 11.1 6.2% in wild boar (11/99). Significantly higher seropositivity was found in red deer compared with the other species (P<0.001). HEV RNA was detected in 20 animals (4.6%; CI95%: 2.6-6.5%). HEV active infection was found in 9.5 4.9% of cattle (13/137), 5.0 4.2% of red deer (5/101), 1.0 1.9% of fallow deer (1/102) and 1.0 2.0% of wild boar (1/99). The phylogenetic analysis performed in the RNA-positive wild boar showed that the sequence isolated belonged to zoonotic genotype 3, clade 3abchij. The results pointed out widespread HEV circulation in the DNP. HEV exposure and active infection were evidenced in the four sampled ungulate species, confirming for the first time HEV infection in cattle in Europe. Further studies are required to elucidate the role of this species in the epidemiology of HEV and to assess the zoonotic risk of HEV transmission through the consumption of cattle products in Spain
Departamento de Sanidad Animal. Facultad de Veterinaria. Universidad de Córdoba (UCO). | |
Instituto de Investigación en Recursos Cinegéticos (IREC). Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Científicas (CSIC). Universidad de Castilla La Mancha (UCLM). Gobierno de Castilla-La Mancha (JCCM). | |
Unidad de Enfermedades Infecciosas. Hospital Universitario Reina Sofía de Córdoba. Instituto Maimonides de Investigación Biomédica de Cordoba. | |
Departamento de Anatomía y Anatomía Patológica Comparadas. Facultad de Veterinaria. Universidad de Córdoba (UCO). | |
Servicio de Zoonosis Emergentes, de Baja Prevalencia y Agresivos Biológicos (NED). Centro de Vigilancia Sanitaria Veterinaria (VISAVET). Universidad Complutense (UCM). | |
Link to HEV2018 Hepatitis E: Paradigm of a food-borne zoonotic emerging disease in Europe