Rabies and Wildlife Zoonoses Group, Department of Virology, Veterinary Laboratories Agency, Weybridge, New Haw, Addlestone, Surrey, United Kingdom.
Adv Virus Res. 2011;79:239-89. doi: 10.1016/B978-0-12-387040-7.00012-3.
Numerous bat species have been identified as important reservoirs of zoonotic viral pathogens. Rabies and rabies-related viruses constitute one of the most important viral zoonoses and pose a significant threat to public health across the globe. Whereas rabies virus (RABV) appears to be restricted to bats of the New World, related lyssavirus species have not been detected in the Americas and have only been detected in bat populations across Africa, Eurasia, and Australia. Currently, 11 distinct species of lyssavirus have been identified, 10 of which have been isolated from bat species and all of which appear to be able to cause encephalitis consistent with that seen with RABV infection of humans. In contrast, whereas lyssaviruses are apparently able to cause clinical disease in bats, it appears that these lyssaviruses may also be able to circulate within bat populations in the absence of clinical disease. This feature of these highly encephalitic viruses, alongside many other aspects of lyssavirus infection in bats, is poorly understood. Here, we review what is known of the complex relationship between bats and lyssaviruses, detailing both natural and experimental infections of these viruses in both chiropteran and nonchiropteran models. We also discuss potential mechanisms of virus excretion, transmission both to conspecifics and spill-over of virus into nonvolant species, and mechanisms of maintenance within bat populations. Importantly, we review the significance of neutralizing antibodies reported within bat populations and discuss the potential mechanisms by which highly neurovirulent viruses such as the lyssaviruses are able to infect bat species in the absence of clinical disease.
许多蝙蝠物种已被确定为重要的人畜共患病病毒宿主。狂犬病和狂犬病相关病毒构成了最重要的病毒性人畜共患病之一，对全球公共卫生构成了重大威胁。虽然狂犬病病毒（RABV）似乎仅限于新世界的蝙蝠，但在美洲尚未检测到相关的狂犬病病毒，仅在非洲、欧亚大陆和澳大利亚的蝙蝠种群中检测到。目前，已鉴定出 11 种不同的狂犬病病毒，其中 10 种已从蝙蝠物种中分离出来，所有这些病毒似乎都能够引起与人类 RABV 感染一致的脑炎。相比之下，虽然狂犬病病毒显然能够在蝙蝠中引起临床疾病，但这些狂犬病病毒似乎也能够在没有临床疾病的情况下在蝙蝠种群中传播。这些高度嗜神经性病毒的这一特征，以及蝙蝠中狂犬病病毒感染的许多其他方面，都知之甚少。在这里，我们回顾了蝙蝠和狂犬病病毒之间复杂关系的已知情况，详细描述了这些病毒在蝙蝠和非蝙蝠模型中的自然和实验感染。我们还讨论了病毒排泄、同种传播和病毒溢出到非飞行物种的潜在机制，以及在蝙蝠种群中维持的潜在机制。重要的是，我们回顾了蝙蝠种群中报告的中和抗体的意义，并讨论了高度神经毒力的病毒（如狂犬病病毒）在没有临床疾病的情况下感染蝙蝠物种的潜在机制。
