Distribution and Genetic Diversity of Hepatitis E Virus in Wild and Domestic Rabbits in Australia

Jenckel, Maria; Smith, Ina; King, Tegan; West, Peter; Taggart, Patrick L.; Strive, Tanja; Hall, Robyn N.

doi:10.3390/pathogens10121637

Cited by 7 publications

(21 citation statements)

References 40 publications

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“…Experimental infection studies have shown that while rabbits can develop both acute and chronic hepatitis following HEV infection, infection is often subclinical and sudden death has not been observed, except in pregnant rabbits (24)(25)(26)(27). A recent study found a seroprevalence of 9% in healthy shot wild rabbits in Australia (19), providing further support that HEV was likely an incidental finding.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Because of these selection criteria, most cases were from domestic rabbits. Subsequently, 34 known HEV-positive domestic rabbit liver samples (from the same sample collection), 24 of which were also RHDV-positive, were sequenced for another study (19) and the data were re-analysed here.…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Total RNA was extracted from 20–30 mg of liver tissue with the Maxwell SimplyRNA Tissue Kit (Promega) on a Maxwell RSC 16 instrument (Promega) after homogenisation with glass beads, as described previously (19). Libraries were prepared for metatranscriptomic sequencing using the NEB-Next Ultra II RNA Library Prep Kit for Illumina (New England Biolabs) with the addition of an rRNA depletion step (NEBNext rRNA Depletion Kit (Human/Mouse/Rat), New England Biolabs).…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Raw data were pre-processed using FastQC (v0.11.08), Trimmomatic (v0.38) (51) and FLASh (v1.2.11) (52), as described previously (19). Cleaned reads were mapped against the rabbit reference genome (GCA_000003625.1 OryCun2.0) using Bowtie2 (v2.2.9) (53) to filter out host reads.…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…For comparison, metatranscriptomic sequencing of 24 known RHDV+HEV-positive liver samples almost always showed an extremely high proportion of viral reads (x̄ 52.7%; Figure 1B) (19). Overwhelmingly, most unknown samples grouped as unassigned (i.e., most reads were classified as unassigned).…”

Section: Clostridiaceae Pasteurella and Eimeria Are Common Colonists ...mentioning

confidence: 99%

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Pathogen profiling of Australian rabbits by metatranscriptomic sequencing

Jenckel

Hall

Strive

2022

Preprint

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Australia is known for its long history of using biocontrol agents, like myxoma virus and rabbit haemorrhagic disease virus (RHDV), to manage wild European rabbit populations. Interestingly, while undertaking RHDV surveillance of rabbits that were found dead we observed that approximately 40% of samples were negative for RHDV. To investigate whether other infectious agents are responsible for killing rabbits in Australia we subjected a subset of these RHDV-negative liver samples to metatranscriptomic sequencing. In addition, we investigated whether the host transcriptome data could provide additional differentiation between likely infectious versus non-infectious causes of death. We identified transcripts from several Clostridia species, Pasteurella multocida, Pseudomonas, and Eimeria stiedae in liver samples of several rabbits that had died suddenly, all of which are known to infect rabbits and are capable of causing fulminant disease. In addition, we identified Hepatitis E virus and Cyniclomyces yeast in some samples, both of which are not usually associated with severe disease. In one third of the sequenced liver samples, no infectious agent could be identified. While metatranscriptomic sequencing cannot provide definitive evidence of causation, additional host transcriptome analysis provided further insights to distinguish between pathogenic microbes and commensals or environmental contaminants. Interestingly, three samples where no pathogen could be identified showed evidence of upregulated host immune responses, while immune response pathways were not upregulated when E. stiedae, Pseudomonas, or yeast were detected. In summary, although no new putative rabbit pathogens were identified, this study provides a robust workflow for future investigations into rabbit mortality events.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Clostridiaceae Pasteurella and Eimeria Are Common Colonists ...mentioning

confidence: 99%

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Pathogen profiling of Australian rabbits by metatranscriptomic sequencing

Jenckel

Hall

Strive

2022

Preprint

Self Cite

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Hepatitis E virus in wild and domestic rabbits from Portugal: a combined molecular and longitudinal serological study

Santos-Silva,

Santos,

López-López

et al. 2024

Vet Res Commun

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Hepatitis E virus (HEV), species Paslahepevirus balayani, poses a global public health threat, especially in developing countries, by causing acute enterically transmitted hepatitis. HEV infects various mammalian hosts and belongs to the genus Paslahepevirus in the family Hepeviridae. While swine are recognized as the main hosts of HEV, rabbits, which can also be affected by swine HEV-3 related strains, serve as the primary reservoir for the distinct emerging and zoonotic HEV-3ra subtype. In Portugal, where the European wild rabbit is abundant, their role in HEV epidemiology remains unclear. The primary aim of the present research was to evaluate the circulation and the potential for HEV infection within these species. This study employed a molecular and longitudinal serological approach to investigate HEV in Portuguese rabbits. Among the 205 wild rabbits tested, a seroprevalence of 2.44% (95% CI: 0.80–5.60) was found, with no significant associations with age, sex, localization, or sampling dates. Seropositive animals were found in the south and center regions of the country. HEV RNA was not detected in 120 fecal samples, suggesting a natural, low level, and widespread viral circulation. The study underscores the need for further research to comprehend HEV dynamics in these species, which is crucial for assessing potential transmission risks to humans.

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Pathogen profiling of Australian rabbits by metatranscriptomic sequencing

Jenckel

Hall

Strive

2022

Transbounding Emerging Dis

Self Cite

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Australia is known for its long history of using biocontrol agents, such as myxoma virus (MYXV) and rabbit haemorrhagic disease virus (RHDV), to manage wild European rabbit populations. Interestingly, while undertaking RHDV surveillance of rabbits that were found dead, we observed that approximately 40% of samples were negative for RHDV. To investigate whether other infectious agents are responsible for killing rabbits in Australia, we subjected a subset of these RHDV‐negative liver samples to metatranscriptomic sequencing. In addition, we investigated whether the host transcriptome data could provide additional differentiation between likely infectious versus non‐infectious causes of death. We identified transcripts from several Clostridia species, Pasteurella multocida, Pseudomonas spp., and Eimeria stiedae, in liver samples of several rabbits that had died suddenly, all of which are known to infect rabbits and are capable of causing disease and mortality. In addition, we identified Hepatitis E virus and Cyniclomyces yeast in some samples, both of which are not usually associated with severe disease. In one‐third of the sequenced total liver RNAs, no infectious agent could be identified. While metatranscriptomic sequencing cannot provide definitive evidence of causation, additional host transcriptome analysis provided further insights to distinguish between pathogenic microbes and commensals or environmental contaminants. Interestingly, three samples where no pathogen could be identified showed evidence of up‐regulated host immune responses, while immune response pathways were not up‐regulated when E. stiedae, Pseudomonas, or yeast were detected. In summary, although no new putative rabbit pathogens were identified, this study provides a robust workflow for future investigations into rabbit mortality events.

show abstract

Distribution and Genetic Diversity of Hepatitis E Virus in Wild and Domestic Rabbits in Australia

Cited by 7 publications

References 40 publications

Pathogen profiling of Australian rabbits by metatranscriptomic sequencing

Pathogen profiling of Australian rabbits by metatranscriptomic sequencing

Hepatitis E virus in wild and domestic rabbits from Portugal: a combined molecular and longitudinal serological study

Pathogen profiling of Australian rabbits by metatranscriptomic sequencing

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