Genetic Diversity of Domestic Cat Hepadnavirus in Southern Taiwan

Benji Brayan Ilagan Silva; Jin-Yang Chen; Brian Harvey Avanceña Villanueva; Zi-Ying Lu; Hua-Zhen Hsing; Andrew D Montecillo; Maya Shofa; Hoang Minh; Jen-Pin Chuang; Huai-Ying Huang; Akatsuki Saito; Kuo-Pin Chuang

doi:10.3390/v15102128

Genetic Diversity of Domestic Cat Hepadnavirus in Southern Taiwan

Viruses. 2023 Oct 20;15(10):2128. doi: 10.3390/v15102128.

Authors

Benji Brayan Ilagan Silva¹, Jin-Yang Chen², Brian Harvey Avanceña Villanueva^{1

3}, Zi-Ying Lu⁴, Hua-Zhen Hsing⁴, Andrew D Montecillo^{5

6}, Maya Shofa^{7

8}, Hoang Minh⁹, Jen-Pin Chuang^{10

11}, Huai-Ying Huang^{1

12

13}, Akatsuki Saito^{7

8

14}, Kuo-Pin Chuang^{1

2

15

16

17}

Affiliations

¹ International Degree Program in Animal Vaccine Technology, International College, National Pingtung University of Science and Technology, Pingtung 912, Taiwan.
² Graduate Institute of Animal Vaccine Technology, College of Veterinary Medicine, National Pingtung University of Science and Technology, Pingtung 912, Taiwan.
³ School of Chemical, Biological and Materials Engineering and Sciences, Mapúa University, Intramuros, Manila 1002, Philippines.
⁴ Department of Veterinary Medicine, College of Veterinary Medicine, National Pingtung University of Science and Technology, Pingtung 912, Taiwan.
⁵ Microbiology Division, Institute of Biological Sciences, College of Arts and Sciences, University of the Philippines Los Baños, Laguna 4031, Philippines.
⁶ Graduate School, University of the Philippines Los Baños, Laguna 4031, Philippines.
⁷ Department of Veterinary Science, University of Miyazaki, Miyazaki 8892192, Japan.
⁸ Graduate School of Medicine and Veterinary Medicine, University of Miyazaki, Miyazaki 8891692, Japan.
⁹ Department of Anatomy and Histology, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, Vietnam National University of Agriculture, Hanoi 100000, Vietnam.
¹⁰ Department of Surgery, Chia-Yi Hospital, Ministry of Health and Welfare, Chia-Yi 60069, Taiwan.
¹¹ Department of Surgery, Faculty of Medicine, College of Medicine, National Cheng Kung University, Tainan 70101, Taiwan.
¹² Demin Veterinary Hospital, Kaohsiung 811, Taiwan.
¹³ Department of Pet Care and Grooming, Ta Jen University, Pingtung 912, Taiwan.
¹⁴ Center for Animal Disease Control, University of Miyazaki, Miyazaki 8892192, Japan.
¹⁵ School of Dentistry, Kaohsiung Medical University, Kaohsiung 807, Taiwan.
¹⁶ School of Medicine, Kaohsiung Medical University, Kaohsiung 807, Taiwan.
¹⁷ Companion Animal Research Center, National Pingtung University of Science and Technology, Pingtung 912, Taiwan.

Abstract

Domestic cat hepadnavirus (DCH) is an infectious disease associated with chronic hepatitis in cats, which suggests a similarity with hepatitis B virus infections in humans. Since its first identification in Australia in 2018, DCH has been reported in several countries with varying prevalence rates, but its presence in Taiwan has yet to be investigated. In this study, we aimed to identify the presence and genetic diversity of DCH infections in Taiwan. Among the 71 samples tested, eight (11.27%) were positive for DCH. Of these positive cases, three cats had elevated levels of alanine transaminase (ALT) and aspartate transaminase (AST), suggesting an association between DCH infection and chronic hepatitis. Four DCH-positive samples were also tested for feline immunodeficiency virus (FIV) and feline leukemia virus (FeLV) coinfection. One sample (25%) was positive for FIV, whereas there was no positive sample for FeLV (0%). In addition, we performed whole genome sequencing on six samples to determine the viral genome sequences. Phylogenetic analyses identified a distinct lineage compared with previously reported sequences. This study highlights the importance of continuous surveillance of DCH and further research to elucidate the pathophysiology and transmission route of DCH.

Keywords: cat; hepadnavirus; hepatitis; infectious disease; liver; viral.

Publication types

Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

Animals
Cat Diseases* / epidemiology
Cats
Genetic Variation
Hepadnaviridae* / genetics
Hepatitis, Chronic
Humans
Immunodeficiency Virus, Feline* / genetics
Leukemia Virus, Feline
Phylogeny
Taiwan / epidemiology

Grants and funding

This research was funded by the National Pingtung University of Science and Technology, the Kaohsiung Chang Gung Memorial Hospital, and the National Pingtung University of Science and Technology Joint Research Program, NPUST-KMU-112-P001.