A Putative Novel Hepatitis E Virus Genotype 3 Subtype Identified in Rabbit,Germany 2016 |
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| Authors: | Filip Cierniak Felicitas von Arnim Gerald Heckel Rainer G. Ulrich Martin H. Groschup Martin Eiden |
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| Affiliation: | 1.Institute of Novel and Emerging Infectious Diseases, Friedrich-Loeffler-Institut, 17493 Greifswald-Insel Riems, Germany; (F.C.); (F.v.A.); (R.G.U.); (M.H.G.);2.Institute of Ecology and Evolution, University of Bern, 3012 Bern, Switzerland;3.Partner Site Hamburg-Lübeck-Borstel-Riems, Deutsches Zentrum für Infektionsforschung (DZIF), 17493 Greifswald-Insel Riems, Germany |
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| Abstract: | Hepatitis E is an emerging viral disease that is the leading cause of viral hepatitis in the world. The vast majority of hepatitis E cases in developed countries are caused by zoonotic genotypes 3 and 4 of hepatitis E virus (HEV) for which pig and wild boar and to lesser extent rabbits are the main reservoir. According to recent reports rabbits are a source of human HEV infection and highlight the risk of zoonotic foodborne transmission. Here we report the molecular analysis of a novel HEV strain identified in a rabbit during a countrywide surveillance of rabbits and hares in Germany, 2016. The analysis of the complete genome reveals characteristics of a putative novel recombinant subtype of the species Orthohepevirus A within the clade of genotype 3 but not closely related to any known subtypes. Importantly, the genome of this strain possesses a nucleotide exchange in the overlapping region of open reading frames ORF2/ORF3 interfering with a broadly applied diagnostic real-time RT-PCR. In conclusion, a new type of HEV strain was identified in a German rabbit with atypical and novel sequence characteristics. |
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| Keywords: | hepatitis E virus novel genotype rabbit |
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