[Hepatitis E virus antibodies in the macaques and in the personnel serving the macaques of the Adler apery].

There is evidence for the rather high detection rate of antibodies against hepatic E virus (HEV) was rather high in the macaques from the Adler apery in 1999-2005. Anti-HEV was detected in 232 (57.3%) out of 405 examined rhesus macaques (Macaca mulata) and in 16 (16%) out of 100 Java ones (M. fascicularis). The detection rate of anti-HEV ranged from 12.5 to 89.5%% among the rhesus macaques and from 5.9 to 37.5% among the Java ones. Class M anti-HEV was found only in 3 (4.3%) out of 69 Java macaques and in none of the rhesus ones. Of importance are the data of detection of anti-HEV in 3 (7.5%) out of 40 examined employees of the Research Institute of Medical Primatology, all 3 (18.8%) out of 10 employees looking after the monkeys that belonged to the highest-risk group. The epidemiological and epizootological aspects of this infection require further studies.