Molecular Identification and Characterization of a Genotype 3 Hepatitis E Virus (HEV) Strain Detected in a Wolf Faecal Sample, Italy

Sarchese, Vittorio; Fruci, Paola; Palombieri, Andrea; Profio, Federica Di; Robetto, Serena; Ercolini, Carlo; Orusa, Riccardo; Marsilio, Fulvio; Martella, Vito; Martino, Barbara Di

doi:10.3390/ani11123465

Cited by 10 publications

(11 citation statements)

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“…This result agrees with previous studies, in which HEV RNA has never been found in dog serum [ 32 , 37 , 38 ], body cavity transudate [ 28 ], feces [ 37 ], or liver [ 13 ], even after experimental infection [ 32 ]. In a recent study, HEV RNA has been identified in a wolf ( Canis lupus italicus ) rectal swab, which could be due to the predation of an infected animal [ 39 ]. Following this evidence, the negative results from serum samples, and the result on sera samples even after experimental infection, we considered rectal swabs a suitable sample for our study.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Serological, Virological Investigation and Hepatic Injury Evaluation for Hepatitis E Virus in Hunting Dogs

et al. 2022

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Hepatitis E virus (HEV) is a quasi-enveloped single-stranded positive-sense RNA virus belonging to the Orthohepevirus A genus within the Hepeviridae family. The most common transmission route of this virus is fecal–oral, although zoonotic transmission by contact with infected animals has also been described. In this study, 80 sera and rectal swabs were collected from dogs during the 2019/2020 and 2020/2021 wild boar hunting season in Tuscany. All dogs were submitted for serological screening to detect the presence of anti-HEV antibodies. To evaluate the circulation of HEV, rectal swabs from both seropositive dogs and dogs living in the same kennels were examined by One-Step RT-qPCR. In addition, the presence of markers of hepatic damage in dogs’ sera was investigated. Results indicated the presence of anti-HEV antibodies in 4/80 subjects (5%). However, neither HEV RNA nor signs of hepatic damage were found. In conclusion, although HEV can stimulate a specific immuno-response in dogs, this species does not seem to play an important role in HEV epidemiology.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Serological, Virological Investigation and Hepatic Injury Evaluation for Hepatitis E Virus in Hunting Dogs

et al. 2022

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“…Pigs and wild boars are usually considered “reservoirs”. Therefore, these animal species are fundamental for a better understanding of the spread of HEV, even though new animal hosts and viral strains are recently reported [ 8 , 9 ].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Molecular and serological investigation of Hepatitis E virus in pigs slaughtered in Northwestern Italy

et al. 2023

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Background Hepatitis E Virus (HEV) is recently considered an emerging public health concern. HEV genotypes 1 and 2 are widely distributed and pathogenic only for humans. In contrast, HEV, genotypes 3 and 4 are observed in swine, deer, wild boars and rabbits and can also be transmitted to humans. The presence of HEV in the liver, muscle, faeces, blood, and bile was detected by real-time RT-PCR in 156 pigs belonging to twenty different farms, ranging from 1 to 8 months of age. The phylogenetic analysis was performed on the viral strain present in the positive biological matrix, with the lowest Ct. HEV-IgG and HEV-IgM in the sera were analysed by two different ELISA kits. Results Twenty-one pigs, i.e., 13.46% of them (21/156, 95% CI: 8.53%-19.84%), tested positive for HEV in at least one biological matrix by real-time RT-PCR, while phylogenetic analysis revealed the presence of HEV subtypes 3f and 3c. Pig serums analysed by ELISA showed an overall prevalence of 26.92% (42/156, 95% CI: 20.14%-34.60%) for HEV-IgG, whereas the 28.95% (33/114, 95% CI: 20.84%-38.19%) of them tested negative resulted positive for the HEV-IgM. Conclusions The faeces are the biological matrix with the highest probability of detecting HEV. The best concordance value (Kappa Kohen index) and the highest positive correlation (Phi index) were observed for the correlation between bile and liver, even when the number of positive liver samples was lower than the positive bile samples. This finding may suggest that a higher probability of HEV occurs in the bile, when the virus is present in the liver, during the stages of infection. Finally, the presence of HEV in muscle was observed in 11 pigs, usually used for the preparation of some dishes, typical of the Italian tradition, based on raw or undercooked meat. Therefore, their consumption is a possible source of infection for final consumer.

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“…However, even a small number of sequences available for analysis permit concluding with a high level of confidence, that HEV-3 and HEV-4 infection in deer is not always a spillover from suides, wild or domestic, it also may be a result of stable virus transmission in the deer population. No doubt, suides are the primary reservoir of HEV-3 and HEV-4 and may be a source of infection for a number of mammal species that have a dietary link to suides [ 20 ] or share a habitat [ 21 ]. Moreover, transmission patterns from our analysis confirm the observation that domestic pigs may serve as a source of HEV infection for wildlife [ 22 ].…”

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Phylodynamic Analysis Suggests That Deer Species May Be a True Reservoir for Hepatitis E Virus Genotypes 3 and 4

et al. 2023

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Hepatitis E virus (HEV) genotypes 3 and 4 (HEV-3 and HEV-4) cause zoonotic infection in humans, with domestic pigs and wild boars being the main reservoirs of infection. Other than suids, HEV-3 and HEV-4 are found in ruminants, most frequently in deer species. However, it is still debatable, whether HEV infection in deer is a spillover, or indicates a stable virus circulation in these host species. To explore the patterns of HEV-3 and HEV-4 transmission in deer and other host species, we performed a Bayesian analysis of HEV sequences available in GenBank. A total of 27 HEV sequences from different deer species were found in GenBank. Sequences from wild boars collected in the same territories, as well as sequences from all mammals that were most similar to sequences from deer in blast search, were added to the dataset, comprising 617 in total sequences. Due to the presence of partial genomic sequences, they were divided into four subsets (two ORF1 fragments and two ORF2 fragments) and analyzed separately. European HEV-3 sequences and Asian HEV-4 sequences collected from deer species demonstrated two transmission patterns. The first pattern was spillover infection, and the second pattern was deer-to-deer transmission, indicating stable HEV circulation in these species. However, all geographic HEV clusters that contained both deer and swine sequences originated from ancestral swine strains. HEV-3 and HEV-4 transmission patterns in ungulates reconstructed by means of Bayesian analysis indicate that deer species are a true host for HEV. However, wild and domestic swine are often the primary source of infection for ruminants living in the same areas. Complete HEV genomic sequences from different parts of the world are crucial for further understanding the HEV-3 and HEV-4 circulation patterns in wildlife.

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Molecular Identification and Characterization of a Genotype 3 Hepatitis E Virus (HEV) Strain Detected in a Wolf Faecal Sample, Italy

Cited by 10 publications

References 41 publications

Serological, Virological Investigation and Hepatic Injury Evaluation for Hepatitis E Virus in Hunting Dogs

Serological, Virological Investigation and Hepatic Injury Evaluation for Hepatitis E Virus in Hunting Dogs

Molecular and serological investigation of Hepatitis E virus in pigs slaughtered in Northwestern Italy

Phylodynamic Analysis Suggests That Deer Species May Be a True Reservoir for Hepatitis E Virus Genotypes 3 and 4

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