Departamento Sanidad Animal, Grupo de Investigación en Sanidad Animal y Zoonosis (GISAZ), UIC Zoonosis y Enfermedades Emergentes ENZOEM, Universidad de Córdoba, Campus de Rabanales, Edificio Sanidad Animal, Córdoba, España.
Grupo de Virología Clínica y Zoonosis, Unidad de Enfermedades Infecciosas, Instituto Maimónides de Investigación Biomédica de Córdoba (IMIBIC), Hospital Universitario Reina Sofía, Universidad de Córdoba, Córdoba, Spain.
Transbound Emerg Dis. 2022 Nov;69(6):3992-4001. doi: 10.1111/tbed.14702. Epub 2022 Sep 22.
Hepatitis E virus (HEV, family Hepeviridae) is an important emerging and zoonotic pathogen. In recent decades, the number of human cases of zoonotic hepatitis E has increased considerably in industrialized countries and HEV has been detected in an expanding range of mammal species. Although domestic pigs and wild boar are considered the main reservoirs of zoonotic HEV genotypes, the role of other susceptible animals in the epidemiology of the virus is still poorly understood. A large-scale, long-term study was carried out (1) to assess HEV exposure in captive zoo animals in Spain and (2) to determine the dynamics of seropositivity in individuals that were sampled longitudinally during the study period. Between 2007 and 2021, serum samples from 425 zoo animals belonging to 109 animal species (including artiodactyls, carnivores, perissodactyls, proboscideans and rodents) were collected from 11 different zoological parks in Spain. Forty-six of these animals at seven of these zoos were also longitudinally sampled. Anti-HEV antibodies were detected in 36 (8.5%; 95% CI: 5.8-11.1) of 425 sampled zoo animals. Specific antibodies against HEV-3 and HEV-C1 antigens were confirmed in ELISA-positive animals using western blot assay. Two of 46 longitudinally surveyed animals seroconverted during the study period. Seropositivity was significantly higher in carnivores and perissodactyls than in artiodactyls, and also during the period 2012-2016 compared with 2007-2011. HEV RNA was not detected in any of the 262 animals that could be tested by RT-PCR. To the best of the author's knowledge, this is the first large-scale, long-term surveillance on HEV in different orders of zoo mammals. Our results indicate exposure to HEV-3 and HEV-C1 in zoo animals in Spain and confirm a widespread but not homogeneous spatiotemporal circulation of HEV in captive species in this country. Further studies are required to determine the role of zoo species, particularly carnivores and perissodactyls, in the epidemiology of HEV and to clarify the origins of infection in zoological parks.
戊型肝炎病毒 (HEV，肝炎病毒科) 是一种重要的新兴人畜共患病病原体。近几十年来，工业化国家的人畜共患戊型肝炎病例数量显著增加，HEV 已在越来越多的哺乳动物物种中被检测到。虽然家养猪和野猪被认为是人畜共患 HEV 基因型的主要宿主，但其他易感动物在该病毒流行病学中的作用仍知之甚少。进行了一项大规模、长期的研究：(1) 评估西班牙圈养动物园动物中 HEV 的暴露情况，以及 (2) 确定在研究期间进行纵向采样的个体中血清阳性率的动态。2007 年至 2021 年期间，从西班牙 11 个不同的动物园收集了属于 109 个动物物种(包括偶蹄目动物、食肉目动物、奇蹄目动物、长鼻目动物和啮齿目动物)的 425 只动物园动物的血清样本。其中，7 个动物园的 46 只动物还进行了纵向采样。在 425 只采样的动物园动物中，有 36 只(8.5%；95%CI：5.8-11.1)检测到抗 HEV 抗体。使用 Western blot 试验对 ELISA 阳性动物确认了针对 HEV-3 和 HEV-C1 抗原的特异性抗体。在研究期间，有 2 只进行纵向调查的动物发生了血清学转换。与偶蹄目动物相比，食肉目动物和奇蹄目动物的血清阳性率更高，2012-2016 年与 2007-2011 年相比也是如此。在 262 只可通过 RT-PCR 检测的动物中，均未检测到 HEV RNA。据作者所知，这是首次对西班牙不同动物园哺乳动物进行的大规模、长期的 HEV 监测。我们的研究结果表明，西班牙动物园动物接触到了 HEV-3 和 HEV-C1，并证实了该国圈养物种中 HEV 的广泛但不均匀的时空传播。需要进一步研究来确定动物园物种，特别是食肉目动物和奇蹄目动物在 HEV 流行病学中的作用，并阐明动物园中感染的来源。
