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Abstract
Nipah virus (NiV) (Genus Henipavirus) is a recently emerged zoonotic virus that causes severe disease in humans and has been found in bats of the genus Pteropus. Whilst NiV has not been detected in Australia, evidence for NiV-infection has been found in pteropid bats in some of Australia’s closest neighbours. The aim of this study was to determine the occurrence of henipaviruses in fruit bat (Family Pteropodidae) populations to the north of Australia. In particular we tested the hypothesis that Nipah virus is restricted to west of Wallace’s Line. Fruit bats from Australia, Papua New Guinea, East Timor and Indonesia were tested for the presence of antibodies to Hendra virus (HeV) and Nipah virus, and tested for the presence of HeV, NiV or henipavirus RNA by PCR. Evidence was found for the presence of Nipah virus in both Pteropus vampyrus and Rousettus amplexicaudatus populations from East Timor. Serology and PCR also suggested the presence of a henipavirus that was neither HeV nor NiV in Pteropus alecto and Acerodon celebensis. The results demonstrate the presence of NiV in the fruit bat populations on the eastern side of Wallace’s Line and within 500 km of Australia. They indicate the presence of non-NiV, non-HeV henipaviruses in fruit bat populations of Sulawesi and Sumba and possibly in Papua New Guinea. It appears that NiV is present where P. vampyrus occurs, such as in the fruit bat populations of Timor, but where this bat species is absent other henipaviruses may be present, as on Sulawesi and Sumba. Evidence was obtained for the presence henipaviruses in the non-Pteropid species R. amplexicaudatus and in A. celebensis. The findings of this work fill some gaps in knowledge in geographical and species distribution of henipaviruses in Australasia which will contribute to planning of risk management and surveillance activities.
Highlights
Hendra virus (HeV) and Nipah virus (NiV) are paramyxoviruses of the genus Henipavirus, and bats of the Genus Pteropus (Family Pteropodidae) have been identified as their primary wildlife reservoir [1]
The aim of this study is to investigate the occurrence of henipaviruses in fruit bat populations in the regions of northeast Australia (Queensland), New Guinea (Papua New Guinea) and Wallacea (Indonesia and East Timor)
Fruit bats were sampled for the presence of henipaviruses in Australia (Townsville and Cairns in Queensland), Papua New Guinea (Western Province and Madang Province), East Timor (Cova Lima Province) and Indonesia, all of which are located to the east of Wallace’s Line
Summary
Hendra virus (HeV) and Nipah virus (NiV) are paramyxoviruses of the genus Henipavirus, and bats of the Genus Pteropus (Family Pteropodidae) have been identified as their primary wildlife reservoir [1]. These viruses have repeatedly spilled over from the reservoir hosts to cause disease in domestic animals and humans in Australia, Malaysia, Bangladesh and India [2]. Serological evidence of infection has been found in 28 species, 12 from the Genus Pteropus (see Table 1) Despite this effort, there are few published accounts of isolation of henipaviruses from wild bats. These include: three isolates of HeV from Pteropus poliocephalus [3]; four isolates of HeV from Pteropus alecto [4]; one isolate of HeV from Pteropus conspicillatus [4]; and single isolates of NiV from Pteropus hypomelanus, Pteropus lylei and Pteropus vampyrus [5,6,7]
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