Abstract
Hepatitis E caused by hepatitis E virus (HEV) is considered an emerging foodborne zoonosis in industrialized, non-endemic countries. Domestic pigs and wild boars are considered the main reservoir of HEV. However, HEV can also infect an ever-expanding host range of animals, but they exact role in transmitting the virus to other species or humans is mostly unknown. In this work, we investigated the spread of HEV in free-living and captive spotted deer (Axis axis) from Uruguay in a 2-year period (2020–2022) and examined the role of this invasive species as a new potential reservoir of the virus. In addition, with the aim to gain new insights into viral ecology in the context of One Health, by using camera trapping, we identified and quantified temporal and spatial coexistence of spotted deer, wild boars, and cattle. In free-living animals, we detected an anti-HEV seropositivity of 11.1% (6/54). HEV infection and viral excretion in feces were assessed by RT-PCR. Thirteen of 19 samples (68.4%) had HEV RNA. Six samples were amplified using a broadly reactive RT-PCR and sequenced. No captive animal showed evidence of HEV infection. Additionally, HEV RNA was detected in a freshwater pond shared by these species. Phylogenetic and p-distance analysis revealed that zoonotic HEV genotype 3 strains circulate together with unclassified variants related to moose HEV whose potential risk of transmission to humans and other domestic and wild animals is unknown. The data presented here suggest that spotted deer (A. axis) may be a novel host for zoonotic HEV strains.
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F.C. PhD Fellowship by Comisión Académica de Posgrado-UdelaR. This work was funded by the Comisión Sectorial de Investigación Científica-UdelaR under Grant CSIC I+ D 2018 Number 245.
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S.M, J.A. and F.C. conceived the manuscript, discuss data and wrote the draft. A. Cravino set camera trapping, analyzed data and prepared table 1and figures 1, 2 and 3. F.C, R.I., I.F. and A.Cabrera. performed the experiments and prepared figure 3 and tables 2, 3 and 4. C.L., P.G., F.B., and C.E.performed field work and collected the samples. All authors reviewed the manuscript.
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Cancela, F., Cravino, A., Icasuriaga, R. et al. Co-circulation of Hepatitis E Virus (HEV) Genotype 3 and Moose-HEV-Like Strains in Free-Ranging-Spotted Deer (Axis axis) in Uruguay. Food Environ Virol 15, 281–291 (2023). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12560-023-09563-2
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s12560-023-09563-2