Prevalence and molecular characterization of hepatitis E virus (HEV) from wild rodents in Hubei Province, China

Qingwen Ding; Bing Hu; Xuan Yao; Min Gan; Dan Chen; Nailou Zhang; Jinbo Wei; Kun Cai; Zhenhua Zheng

doi:10.1016/j.meegid.2024.105602

Prevalence and molecular characterization of hepatitis E virus (HEV) from wild rodents in Hubei Province, China

Infect Genet Evol. 2024 May 10:121:105602. doi: 10.1016/j.meegid.2024.105602. Online ahead of print.

Authors

Qingwen Ding¹, Bing Hu², Xuan Yao², Min Gan¹, Dan Chen³, Nailou Zhang⁴, Jinbo Wei⁴, Kun Cai⁵, Zhenhua Zheng⁶

Affiliations

¹ Key Laboratory of Special Pathogens and Biosafety, Wuhan Institute of Virology, Center for Biosafety Mega-Science, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Wuhan, Hubei 430071, China; University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100049, PR China.
² Hubei Provincial Center for Disease Control and Prevention, Wuhan, Hubei 430079, China.
³ College of Life Science and Technology, Wuhan Polytechnic University, Wuhan 430024, China.
⁴ Key Laboratory of Special Pathogens and Biosafety, Wuhan Institute of Virology, Center for Biosafety Mega-Science, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Wuhan, Hubei 430071, China.
⁵ Hubei Provincial Center for Disease Control and Prevention, Wuhan, Hubei 430079, China. Electronic address: ckreal@163.com.
⁶ Key Laboratory of Special Pathogens and Biosafety, Wuhan Institute of Virology, Center for Biosafety Mega-Science, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Wuhan, Hubei 430071, China. Electronic address: zhengzh@wh.iov.cn.

PMID: 38734397
DOI: 10.1016/j.meegid.2024.105602

Abstract

Hepatitis E, caused by the hepatitis E virus (HEV), is a global public health issue. Low similarity between the gene sequences of mouse and human HEV led to the belief that the risk of human infection was low. Recent reports of chronic and acute hepatitis E caused by murine HEV infection in humans in Hong Kong have raised global concerns. Therefore, it is crucial to investigate the epidemiology and prevalence of HEV in China. We comprehensively analyzed different rodent HEV strains to understand rocahepevirus occurrence in Hubei Province, China. The HEV positivity rate for was 6.43% (73/1136). We identified seven near-full-length rocahepevirus strains and detected rat HEV antigens in tissues from different mouse species. HEV has extensive tissue tropism and a high viral load in the liver. We highlight the genetic diversity of HEVs in rodents and underscore the importance of paying attention to their variation and evolution.

Keywords: Hepatitis E virus (HEV); High-throughput nucleotide sequencing; Molecular epidemiology; Rodents.