Intrafamilial Transmission of Vaccinia virus during a Bovine Vaccinia Outbreak in Brazil: A New Insight in Viral Transmission Chain

Oliveira, Graziele Pereira; Fernandes, André Tavares Silva; Assis, Felipe Lopes de; Alves, Pedro Augusto; Luiz, Ana Paula; Figueiredo, Leandra Barcelos; Almeida, Cláudia Maria Costa de; Travassos, Carlos Eurico Pires Ferreira; Trindade, Giliane de Souza; Abrahão, Jônatas Santos; Kroon, Erna Geessien

doi:10.4269/ajtmh.13-0621

Cited by 13 publications

(9 citation statements)

References 16 publications

(22 reference statements)

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“…A recent study evaluated the knowledge of healthcare professionals from a BV endemic area, and confirmed that 43.1% of participants were unaware of BV and aspects related to zoonotic VACV infections [ 94 ]. A common theme in the literature is that person-to-person VACV transmission can easily occur due to the direct contact with individuals recently vaccinated against smallpox [ 102 , 103 , 104 , 105 , 106 , 107 ], and direct contact with individuals naturally infected with zoonotic VACV [ 93 , 104 , 108 ]. Hence, person-to-person transmission should not be neglected during zoonotic BV outbreaks as infected individuals could act as possible sources of infection for healthcare professionals, increasing the burden to public health [ 94 ].…”

Section: The Bad: the Economic And Public Health Burden Associatedmentioning

confidence: 99%

Vaccinia Virus Natural Infections in Brazil: The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly

Oliveira

Figueiredo

Costa

et al. 2017

Viruses

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The orthopoxviruses (OPV) comprise several emerging viruses with great importance to human and veterinary medicine, including vaccinia virus (VACV), which causes outbreaks of bovine vaccinia (BV) in South America. Historically, VACV is the most comprehensively studied virus, however, its origin and natural hosts remain unknown. VACV was the primary component of the smallpox vaccine, largely used during the smallpox eradication campaign. After smallpox was declared eradicated, the vaccination that conferred immunity to OPV was discontinued, favoring a new contingent of susceptible individuals to OPV. VACV infections occur naturally after direct contact with infected dairy cattle, in recently vaccinated individuals, or through alternative routes of exposure. In Brazil, VACV outbreaks are frequently reported in rural areas, affecting mainly farm animals and humans. Recent studies have shown the role of wildlife in the VACV transmission chain, exploring the role of wild rodents as reservoirs that facilitate VACV spread throughout rural areas. Furthermore, VACV circulation in urban environments and the significance of this with respect to public health, have also been explored. In this review, we discuss the history, epidemiological, ecological and clinical aspects of natural VACV infections in Brazil, also highlighting alternative routes of VACV transmission, the factors involved in susceptibility to infection, and the natural history of the disease in humans and animals, and the potential for dissemination to urban environments.

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Section: The Bad: the Economic And Public Health Burden Associatedmentioning

confidence: 99%

Vaccinia Virus Natural Infections in Brazil: The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly

Oliveira

Figueiredo

Costa

et al. 2017

Viruses

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“…During outbreaks, direct contact with infected animals is the main transmission route to humans, but it may also occur by contact with contaminated fomites. Furthermore, reports have suggested a possible human-to-human transmission of VACV [ 16 , 17 , 18 ].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

From Lesions to Viral Clones: Biological and Molecular Diversity amongst Autochthonous Brazilian Vaccinia Virus

Oliveira

Assis

Almeida

et al. 2015

Viruses

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Vaccinia virus (VACV) has had an important role for humanity because of its use during the smallpox eradication campaign. VACV is the etiologic agent of the bovine vaccinia (BV), an emerging zoonosis that has been associated with economic, social, veterinary and public health problems, mainly in Brazil and India. Despite the current and historical VACV importance, there is little information about its circulation, prevalence, origins and maintenance in the environment, natural reservoirs and diversity. Brazilian VACV (VACV-BR) are grouped into at least two groups based on genetic and biological diversity: group 1 (G1) and group 2 (G2). In this study, we went to the field and investigated VACV clonal diversity directly from exanthemous lesions, during BV outbreaks. Our results demonstrate that the G1 VACV-BR were more frequently isolated. Furthermore, we were able to co-detect the two variants (G1 and G2) in the same sample. Molecular and biological analysis corroborated previous reports and confirmed the co-circulation of two VACV-BR lineages. The detected G2 clones presented exclusive genetic and biological markers, distinct to reference isolates, including VACV-Western Reserve. Two clones presented a mosaic profile, with both G1 and G2 features based on the molecular analysis of A56R, A26L and C23L genes. Indeed, some SNPs and INDELs in A56R nucleotide sequences were observed among clones of the same virus population, maybe as a result of an increased mutation rate in a mixed population. These results provide information about the diversity profile in VACV populations, highlighting its importance to VACV evolution and maintenance in the environment.

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“…Although raw milk and cheese are potential sources of infection, no clinical cases have been associated with this transmission route ( 3 , 4 ). Data for person-to-person transmission in Brazil are scarce, but person-to-person transmission was recently reported ( 5 ). We report a possible case of person-to-person transmission of VACV.…”

mentioning

confidence: 99%

“…On the basis of previous studies that detected viral DNA in clinical samples from persons with bovine vaccinia ( 1 ), we used a quantitative PCR to amplify the vgf and ha genes of VACV ( 3 – 5 ), a standard PCR to detect the ha gene ( 3 – 5 ), and a seminested PCR to detect the ati gene (F.L. Assis, unpub.…”

mentioning

confidence: 99%