Incursions of rabbit haemorrhagic disease virus 2 in Canada—Clinical, molecular and epidemiological investigation

Ambagala, Aruna; Schwantje, Helen; Laurendeau, Sonja; Snyman, Heindrich N.; Joseph, Tomy; Pickering, Bradley; Hooper-McGrevy, Kathleen; Babiuk, Shawn; Moffat, Estella; Lamboo, Lindsey; Lung, Oliver; Goolia, Melissa; Pinette, Mathieu; Embury-Hyatt, Carissa

doi:10.1111/tbed.14128

Cited by 11 publications

(16 citation statements)

References 31 publications

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“…(2021), this points to different, possibly concomitant events of viral incursion in North America in the past 5 years. Nevertheless, a sequence obtained in British Columbia in 2018 (Canada 2018) (Ambagala, Schwantje, et al., 2021) partially clusters with the southwestern USA strains, including our 12 California strains. Interestingly, this strain is more similar to the California strains (98.6%–98.7% nucleotide identity), than to Canada 2016 (92.7%) and New York 2020 (97.3%), which suggests that the southwestern USA outbreak may have originated from a strain that was introduced into British Columbia in 2018.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 54%

“…The southwestern sequences are dissimilar to strains obtained in the Canada 2016 and New York 2020 outbreaks (Ambagala, Schwantje, et al., 2021; USDA‐APHIS, 2020). As suggested by O'Donnell et al.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 65%

“…In 2018, a phylogenetically different RHDV2 strain caused high mortality in colonies of feral domestic rabbits on the coast of British Columbia, Canada (USDA‐APHIS, 2018). There were further detections in Vancouver (British Columbia), Canada, in 2019, but the viral sequences differed from those obtained the previous year in the same region (Ambagala, Schwantje, et al., 2021; USDA‐APHIS, 2018, 2020). At the same time, RHDV2 was detected in feral and domestic European rabbits in Washington State and Ohio, USA, in 2018 and 2019 (USDA‐APHIS, 2020; Williams et al., 2021).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 86%

“…Sequences from the Quebec 2016 episode differed from those detected in British Columbia in 2018 and 2019 (USDA‐APHIS, 2020), and so far, no strain similar to the first known event in Quebec has been detected in North America. In March 2020, the virus killed several domestic rabbits in a clinic of New York City, USA; the detected strains differed from those collected in British Columbia in 2018 and were more similar to the strains detected in the same area of Canada the following year (Ambagala, Schwantje, et al., 2021; USDA‐APHIS, 2020). Since its first detection in New Mexico, USA, on 24 March 2020, an outbreak of RHDV2 spread through wild and domestic leporid populations across the entire southwestern USA, Mexico, and, most recently, some northern states of the USA and southern Canada (Government of Alberta, 2021; USDA‐APHIS, 2020, 2021).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 92%

“…In North America, there have been several detections of RHDV2 since the first report in 2016 in Quebec, Canada (Ambagala, Schwantje, et al., 2021; Rouco et al., 2019; USDA‐APHIS, 2020). In 2018, a phylogenetically different RHDV2 strain caused high mortality in colonies of feral domestic rabbits on the coast of British Columbia, Canada (USDA‐APHIS, 2018).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Early circulation of rabbit haemorrhagic disease virus type 2 in domestic and wild lagomorphs in southern California, USA (2020–2021)

Asín

Rejmanek

Clifford

et al. 2021

Transbounding Emerging Dis

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Rabbit haemorrhagic disease virus type 2 (RHDV2) causes a severe systemic disease with hepatic necrosis. Differently from classic RHDV, which affects only European rabbits (Oryctolagus cuniculus), RHDV2 can affect many leporid species, including hares (Lepus spp.) and cottontail rabbits (Sylvilagus spp.). RHDV2 emerged in Europe in 2010 and spread worldwide. During the last 5 years, there have been multiple outbreaks in North America since the first known event in 2016 in Quebec, Canada, including several detections in British Columbia, Canada, between 2018 and 2019, Washington State and Ohio, USA, in 2018 and 2019, and New York, USA, in 2020. However, the most widespread outbreak commenced in March 2020 in the southwestern USA and Mexico. In California, RHDV2 spread widely across several southern counties between 2020 and 2021, and the aim of this study was to report and characterize these early events of viral incursion and circulation within the state. Domestic and wild lagomorphs (n = 81) collected between August 2020 and February 2021 in California with a suspicion of RHDV2 infection were tested by reverse transcription quantitative real‐time PCR on the liver, and histology and immunohistochemistry for pan‐lagovirus were performed on liver sections. In addition, whole genome sequencing from 12 cases was performed. During this period, 33/81 lagomorphs including 24/59 domestic rabbits (O. cuniculus), 3/16 desert cottontail rabbits (Sylvilagus audubonii), and 6/6 black‐tailed jackrabbits (Lepus californicus) tested positive. All RHDV2‐positive animals had hepatic necrosis typical of pathogenic lagovirus infection, and the antigen was detected in sections from individuals of the three species. The 12 California sequences were closely related (98.9%–99.95%) to each other, and also very similar (99.0%–99.4%) to sequences obtained in other southwestern states during the 2020–2021 outbreak; however, they were less similar to strains obtained in New York in 2020 (96.7%–96.9%) and Quebec in 2016 (92.4%–92.6%), suggesting that those events could be related to different viral incursions. The California sequences were more similar (98.6%–98.7%) to a strain collected in British Columbia in 2018, which suggests that that event could have been related to the 2020 outbreak in the southwestern USA.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 54%

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 65%