Hepatitis E is recognized as a zoonosis, and swine are known reservoirs, but how broadly enzootic its causative agent, hepatitis E virus (HEV), is remains controversial. To determine the prevalence of HEV infection in animals, a serological assay with capability to detect anti-HEV-antibody across a wide variety of animal species was devised. Recombinant antigens comprising truncated capsid proteins generated from HEV-subgenomic constructs that represent all four viral genotypes were used to capture anti-HEV in the test sample and as an analyte reporter. To facilitate development and validation of the assay, serum samples were assembled from blood donors (n ‫؍‬ 372), acute hepatitis E patients (n ‫؍‬ 94), five laboratory animals (rhesus monkey, pig, New Zealand rabbit, Wistar rat, and BALB/c mouse) immunized with HEV antigens, and four pigs experimentally infected with HEV. The assay was then applied to 4,936 sera collected from 35 genera of animals that were wild, feral, domesticated, or otherwise held captive in the United States. Test positivity was determined in 457 samples (9.3%). These originated from: bison (3/65, 4.6%), cattle (174/1,156, 15%), dogs (2/212, 0.9%), Norway rats (2/318, 0.6%), farmed swine (267/648, 41.2%), and feral swine (9/306, 2.9%). Only the porcine samples yielded the highest reactivities. HEV RNA was amplified from one farmed pig and two feral pigs and characterized by nucleotide sequencing to belong to genotype 3. HEV infected farmed swine primarily, and the role of other animals as reservoirs of its zoonotic spread appears to be limited.Hepatitis E virus (HEV), the causative agent of hepatitis E, is a nonenveloped, single-stranded, positive-sense RNA virus that belongs to the Hepeviridae family (11). Among the mammalian HEV, at least four genotypes have been recognized (47). In addition, two putative genotypes of HEV, one genotype from the Norway rat (Rattus norvegicus) (25) and the other from a wild boar (56), were recently reported. In addition to mammalian HEV strains, avian HEV (38) and the newly described cutthroat trout virus represent new genera (3). Among mammalian HEV, genotypes 1 and 2 are primarily associated with fecal-oral transmission among humans which in developing countries can lead to waterborne epidemics of jaundice. Genotypes 3 and 4 circulate in humans and several animal species, and are associated with sporadic infection among humans in industrialized countries (57). Hepatitis E is mostly self-limiting but can progress to fulminant liver failure especially in pregnant women, and chronic HEV infection resulting in cirrhosis has been observed among solid-organ-transplant recipients and other immunosuppressed people (32).HEV infection and hepatitis E in industrialized countries, including the United States, are more common than previously recognized (33,58). A study conducted in a large civilian, noninstitutionalized U.S. population found an average anti-HEV-IgG seroprevalence rate of 21%, with a strongly positive

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Various establishments exist in which animals are held for a variety of reasons. Historically, the management and inspection of animals in commerce and in private keeping have involved a considerable degree of arbitrary evaluation based on the personal experience of the vendor, keeper, advisor, or inspector. Accordingly, relevant protocols and standards are subject to considerable variation. Relatedly, diversity of traded and privately kept species generates significant challenges for those responsible for facility management and inspection alike. Animal welfare and public health and safety are constant and major concerns that require objective methodologies to monitor and control. This report focuses on establishments concerned with the boarding, breeding, storage, vending or handover of animals intended for human “companions” or “pets”, and aims to provide universal objective information for essential husbandry, inspection protocols and an allied inspection assessment tool for scoring establishments.

Infection with C psittaci and a high plasma cholesterol concentration may be risk factors for developing atherosclerosis in pet psittacine birds.