Hepatitis E virus in wild rabbits and European brown hares in Germany

Abstract

Recently, a change of hepatitis E from being a typical travel-associated disease to an autochthonous zoonosis in Germany was observed. An increasing number of autochthonous infections with the hepatitis E Virus (HEV) have been recognized in developed countries. Venison from wild boar is already known to be a potential source of infection, if not prepared properly by the consumer. In Germany, certain wild animals are known to be a reservoir for HEV. However, current information is missing about European brown hares (Lepus europaeus) and wild rabbits (Oryctolagus cuniculus). Thus, a total of 833 hunting-harvested animals (European brown hares n = 669; wild rabbits n = 164) were tested for the occurrence of HEV RNA and HEV antibodies. For this, liver and blood specimens were taken after hunts in six German federal states. HEV antibodies were found by ELISA in 2.2% (624/14) of European brown hares, but no HEV RNA was detectable by nested real-time RT-PCR. In contrast, a seroprevalence of 37.3% (126/47) was observed for wild rabbits, and 17.1% (164/28) of the samples were HEV RNA positive. Genomic analysis revealed that these partial sequences clustered within the rabbit clade of HEV-3 genotype. In addition, one rabbit sequence segregated into subtype 3g of HEV-3. Highest seroprevalences for hares and rabbits were detected in the federal states of Bavaria and of Schleswig-Holstein, respectively. Comparing urban, rural and insular areas, the highest seroprevalence was shown for wild rabbits in rural areas and for European brown hares on the northern island Fehmarn. This study provides evidence that European brown hares and wild rabbits from Germany can be infected with HEV. The different prevalences indicate that wild rabbits are a potential reservoir for HEV in Germany, whereas European brown hares seem to be only of minor importance for the epidemiology of HEV.

Molecular and serological surveillance of Hepatitis E virus in wild and domestic carnivores in Brandenburg, Germany

“…RNA was extracted by QIAmp Viral Mini Kit (Qiagen GmbH, Hilden, Germany) or the NucleoMag VET Kit (Macherey-Nagel, D€ uren, Germany) and included an internal control (Hoffmann, Depner, Schirrmeier, & Beer, 2006). Molecular detection was carried out by a SYBRgreen-based nested real-time RT-PCR assay (Hammerschmidt et al, 2017). The statistical calculation was made using Epitools (Sergant, 2017 Figure S1).…”

An overview: Rabbit hepatitis E virus (HEV) and rabbit providing an animal model for HEV study

“…Another study conducted in Germany found that 2.2% (14/624) of the European brown hares and 37.3% (47/126) of the wild rabbits were tested positive for anti‐HEV. No HEV RNA was detected in European brown hares but 17.1% (28/164) of the wild rabbits were HEV RNA‐positive . Researchers from the Netherlands, Korea, and Canada have reported detecting HEV RNA in the local rabbit populations, with prevalence ranging from 0.9% to 60%.…”

“…The first strain of rHEV was isolated in the farmed rabbits in Gansu province, China, in 2009 . Then, researchers in the United States, France, Italy Germany, the Netherlands, Korea, and Canada also discovered evidence of rHEV infections in different rabbit populations. According to the International Committee on the Taxonomy of Viruses Hepeviridae Study Group, the rHEV is temporarily assigned to HEV‐3 based on that the intermediate nucleotide and amino acid distances were between those observed within HEV‐1, HEV‐3, and HEV‐4, and distances between genotypes .…”

Hepatitis E virus and related viruses in wild, domestic and zoo animals: A review

“…All animals were reported to be clinically healthy. In a recent study, 2.2% of 669 European brown hares and 37.3% of 164 wild rabbits hunted in Germany were tested positive for anti‐HEV antibodies (Hammerschmidt et al., ). HEV‐RNA was detected in 17.1% of the rabbits.…”