Cardone Roberta, Buonavoglia Alessio, Lanave Gianvito, Vasinioti Violetta Iris, Mininni Valentina, Lorusso Eleonora, Decaro Nicola, Martella Vito, Elia Gabriella, Diakoudi Georgia
Department of Veterinary Medicine, University of Bari Aldo Moro, Valenzano, Italy.
Veterinary Practitioner, Bari, Italy.
Transbound Emerg Dis. 2023 May 5;2023:5251034. doi: 10.1155/2023/5251034. eCollection 2023.
Equine hepacivirus (EqHV), also known as Hepacivirus A, represents the most closely related genetic homologue of human hepatitis C virus (HCV). Although detected worldwide, limited information on the clinical features of this infection is available and on the mechanisms by which EqHV is transmitted. In this study, we describe a spread of infection of EqHV that occurred in a small stable of horses in southern Italy. The RNA of EqHV was detected in 6/13 (46.2%) sera of the horses introduced into the herd, at different times, over a period of approximately one year. Based on the sequencing analyses of genomic portions located in the NS5B, 5'UTR, and NS3 genes, the viruses detected in the animals were genetically highly related (100% nt identity) to each other. The nearly full-length genome of the virus identified from two horses was generated. For one animal with a profile of chronic infection, the genome sequence was determined with a 7-month interval, revealing 26nt changes resulting in 11 nonsynonymous intrahost nucleotide variations. Overall, based on the epidemiological information, we support the hypothesis that horizontal transmission occurred in the herd.
马丙型肝炎病毒（EqHV），也称为丙型肝炎病毒A，是与人类丙型肝炎病毒（HCV）亲缘关系最近的基因同源物。尽管在全球范围内都有检测到，但关于这种感染的临床特征以及EqHV传播机制的信息有限。在本研究中，我们描述了在意大利南部一个小型马厩中发生的EqHV感染传播情况。在大约一年的时间里，不同时间引入马群的马匹血清中，有6/13（46.2%）检测到EqHV的RNA。基于对位于NS5B、5'UTR和NS3基因的基因组部分的测序分析，在动物中检测到的病毒彼此之间在基因上高度相关（核苷酸同一性为100%）。从两匹马中鉴定出的病毒产生了近乎全长的基因组。对于一匹具有慢性感染特征的动物，间隔7个月测定了基因组序列，发现有26个核苷酸变化，导致宿主内11个非同义核苷酸变异。总体而言，根据流行病学信息，我们支持该马群中发生水平传播的假说。
