Occurrence of Hepatitis E Virus in Pigs and Pork Cuts and Organs at the Time of Slaughter, Spain, 2017

Zoonotic hepatitis E, mainly caused by hepatitis E virus (HEV) genotype (gt) 3, is a foodborne disease that has emerged in Europe in recent decades. The main animal reservoir for genotype 3 is domestic pigs. Pig liver and liver derivates are considered the major risk products, and studies focused on the presence of HEV in pig muscles are scarce. The objective of the present study was to evaluate the presence of HEV in different organs and tissues of 45 apparently healthy pigs from nine Spanish slaughterhouses (50% national production) that could enter into the food supply chain. Anti-HEV antibodies were evaluated in serum by an ELISA test. Ten samples from each animal were analyzed for the presence of HEV RNA by reverse transcription real-time PCR (RT-qPCR). The overall seroprevalence obtained was 73.3% (33/45). From the 450 samples analyzed, a total of 26 RT-qPCR positive samples were identified in the liver (7/45), feces (6/45), kidney (5/45), heart (4/45), serum (3/45), and diaphragm (1/45). This is the first report on detection of HEV RNA in kidney and heart samples of naturally infected pigs. HEV RNA detection was negative for rib, bacon, lean ham, and loin samples. These findings indicate that pig meat could be considered as a low risk material for foodborne HEV infection.This study was partially supported by the RTA2014-00024-C04 from the Spanish Ministry of Economy and Innovation. NG and DR-L received a research grant by INTERPORC.S

Occurrence of Hepatitis E Virus in Pigs and Pork Cuts and Organs at the Time of Slaughter, Spain, 2017

Zoonotic hepatitis E, mainly caused by hepatitis E virus (HEV) genotype (gt) 3, is a foodborne disease that has emerged in Europe in recent decades. The main animal reservoir for genotype 3 is domestic pigs. Pig liver and liver derivates are considered the major risk products, and studies focused on the presence of HEV in pig muscles are scarce. The objective of the present study was to evaluate the presence of HEV in different organs and tissues of 45 apparently healthy pigs from nine Spanish slaughterhouses (50% national production) that could enter into the food supply chain. Anti-HEV antibodies were evaluated in serum by an ELISA test. Ten samples from each animal were analyzed for the presence of HEV RNA by reverse transcription realtime PCR (RT-qPCR). The overall seroprevalence obtained was 73.3% (33/45). From the 450 samples analyzed, a total of 26 RT-qPCR positive samples were identified in the liver (7/45), feces (6/45), kidney (5/45), heart (4/45), serum (3/45), and diaphragm (1/45). This is the first report on detection of HEV RNA in kidney and heart samples of naturally infected pigs. HEV RNA detection was negative for rib, bacon, lean ham, and loin samples. These findings indicate that pig meat could be considered as a low risk material for foodborne HEV infection.Fil: García, Nerea. Universidad Complutense de Madrid; EspañaFil: Hernández, Marta. Universidad de Burgos; EspañaFil: Gutierrez Boada, Maialen. Universidad de Burgos; EspañaFil: Valero, Antonio. Universidad de Córdoba; EspañaFil: Navarro, Alejandro. Universidad Complutense de Madrid; EspañaFil: Muñoz Chimeno, Milagros. Universidad Carlos III de Madrid. Instituto de Salud; EspañaFil: Fernández Manzano, Alvaro. Universidad Complutense de Madrid; EspañaFil: Escobar, Franco Matias. Universidad Nacional de Río Cuarto. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas, Fisicoquímicas y Naturales. Departamento de Microbiología e Inmunología; Argentina. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Córdoba; ArgentinaFil: Martínez, Irene. Universidad Complutense de Madrid; EspañaFil: Bárcena, Carmen. Universidad Complutense de Madrid; EspañaFil: González, Sergio. Universidad Complutense de Madrid; EspañaFil: Avellón, Ana. Universidad Carlos III de Madrid. Instituto de Salud; EspañaFil: Eiros, Jose M.. Hospital Universitario Rio Hortega; EspañaFil: Fongaro, Gislaine. Universidade Federal de Santa Catarina; BrasilFil: Domínguez, Lucas. Universidad Complutense de Madrid; EspañaFil: Goyache, Joaquín. Universidad Complutense de Madrid; EspañaFil: Rodríguez Lázaro, David. Universidad de Burgos; Españ