Abstract
Hepatitis E virus (HEV) is a common causative agent of acute hepatitis in the world, with a serious public health burden in both developing and industrialized countries. Cervids, along with wild boars and lagomorphs, are the main wild hosts of HEV in Europe and constitute a documented source of infection for humans. The aim of this study was to evaluate the presence of HEV in roe deer (Capreolus capreolus) and fallow deer (Dama dama) living in Tuscany, Central Italy. Liver samples from 48 roe deer and 60 fallow deer were collected from carcasses during the hunting seasons. Following the results obtained from molecular and histopathologic studies, 5/48 (10.4%) roe deer and 1/60 (1.7%) fallow deer liver samples were positive for the presence of HEV RNA. All PCR-positive livers were also IHC-positive for viral antigen presence, associated with degenerative and inflammatory lesions with predominantly CD3+ cellular infiltrates. This study represents the first identification in Italy of HEV RNA in roe and fallow deer and the first study in literature describing liver alterations associated with HEV infection in cervids. These results demonstrate that HEV is present in wild cervid populations in Italy and confirm the potential zoonotic role of these species.
Highlights
Hepatitis E virus (HEV) is the leading cause of an acute viral hepatitis, namely hepatitis E, causing serious public health burden in both developing and industrialized countries around the world [1]
Because fallow deer (Dama dama) and roe deer (Capreolus capreolus) are widely distributed in Central Italy and represent, together with red deer (Cervus elaphus), the main species of cervids, the purpose of this study was to investigate HEV presence in fallow deer and roe deer in this area and to describe the histopathologic lesions associated with the viral infection
Previous serological studies conducted on cervids in many European countries assessed a seroprevalence between 0 and 13.9%, while HEV RNA was detected with a prevalence up to 15.4% in red deer, 34.4% in roe deer, and 4.4% in fallow deer in several European countries [14–21]
Summary
Hepatitis E virus (HEV) is the leading cause of an acute viral hepatitis, namely hepatitis E, causing serious public health burden in both developing and industrialized countries around the world [1]. HEV belongs to the Hepeviridae family, including 2 genera: Orthohepevirus (comprising 4 species: A, B, C, and D) and the monospecific Piscihepevirus genus [2]. Orthohepevirus A is the most studied species and despite representing a single serotype it is divided into at least eight genotypes (HEV1-8). Genotypes 1 and 2 (HEV1-2) are strictly human viruses and present epidemic forms via a fecal–oral route in developing countries (Africa, Asia, and Latin America), with outbreaks mainly due to water contamination. Genotypes 3 and 4 (HEV3-4) have a wide host range including multiple different mammals (such as ungulates, lagomorph, rodents, and humans) and cause sporadic zoonotic cases primarily as a foodborne pathogen both in industrialized and developing countries
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