Serological evidence for the presence of wobbly possum disease virus in Australia.

Anita Tolpinrud,Stacey E Lynch,Andrés Diaz-Méndez,Leanne Wicker,Magdalena Dunowska,Joanne M Devlin,Simon M Firestone

doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0237091

Anita Tolpinrud, Stacey E Lynch + Show 5 more

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https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0237091

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Abstract

Wobbly possum disease virus (WPDV) is an arterivirus that was originally identified in common brushtail possums (Trichosurus vulpecula) in New Zealand, where it causes severe neurological disease. In this study, serum samples (n = 188) from Australian common brushtail, mountain brushtail (Trichosurus cunninghami) and common ringtail (Pseudocheirus peregrinus) possums were tested for antibodies to WPDV using ELISA. Antibodies to WPDV were detected in possums from all three species that were sampled in the states of Victoria and South Australia. Overall, 16% (30/188; 95% CI 11.0-22.0) of possums were seropositive for WPDV and 11.7% (22/188; 95% CI 7.5-17.2) were equivocal. The frequency of WPDV antibody detection was the highest in possums from the two brushtail species. This is the first reported serological evidence of infection with WPDV, or an antigenically similar virus, in Australian possums, and the first study to find antibodies in species other than common brushtail possums. Attempts to detect viral RNA in spleens by PCR were unsuccessful. Further research is needed to characterise the virus in Australian possums and to determine its impact on the ecology of Australian marsupials.

Highlights

Possum disease (WPD) virus (WPDV) causes a fatal neurological disease of the common brushtail possum (Trichosurus vulpecula) and is classified within the order Nidovirales in the family Arteriviridae [1, 2]
This study is the first to demonstrate antibodies to a Wobbly possum disease virus (WPDV), or an antigenically similar virus, in Australian possums
The use of recombinant nucleocapsid (rN) protein as antigen in this ELISA was informed by previous studies showing this protein to be immunodominant in other arteriviruses [16,17,18]

Summary

Introduction

Possum disease (WPD) virus (WPDV) causes a fatal neurological disease of the common brushtail possum (Trichosurus vulpecula) and is classified within the order Nidovirales in the family Arteriviridae [1, 2]. The disease is characterised by early behavioural changes followed by progressive cachexia and development of neurological signs such as intentional tremors, ataxia, difficulties climbing, and occasionally presumed blindness [2,3,4]. A similar clinical syndrome has more recently been described in common brushtail possums in Tasmania, while another syndrome, characterised predominantly by blindness, has been observed on mainland Australia [5].

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