The presence of viruses in bats populations in Croatia

Abstract

Šišmiši su prepoznati kao rezervoari raznih virusa, uključujući i one zoonotskog potencijala diljem svijeta. U Hrvatskoj dosad nije bilo sustavnog pretraživanja virusa šišmiša te je cilj ovog istraživanja bio razotkriti virom šišmiša i utvrditi njihov javnozdravstveni značaj. U ovom istraživanju utvrđivana je prisutnost specifičnih protutijela za virus bjesnoće u krvi šišmiša virus neutralizacijskim testom te je određivana prisutnost genoma lyssavirusa u obriscima sluznice usne šupljine lančanom reakcijom polimerazom. Utvrđivana je i prisutnost drugih virusnih porodica u obriscima usne šupljine, fecesu i gvanu sekvenciranjem nove generacije. Iako genom lyssavirusa nije utvrđen u obriscima usne šupljine, po prvi puta je u Hrvatskoj utvrđena seroprevalencija specifičnih protutijela za virus EBLV-1 od 5,71% čime je utvrđeno da šišmiši predstavljaju malu, ali ne i zanemarivu javnozdravstvenu prijetnju. Iako su sekvenciranjem nove generacije pronađene 63 virusne porodice, utvrđeni su i genomi adeno-associated virusa, ambidensovirusa, iflavirusa i circo-like virusa, međutim nisu otkriveni drugi zoonotski patogeni.Bats are recognized as reservoirs of many viruses with special emphasis on those with zoonotic potential. There was no systematic research of bats' viruses in Croatia so the aim of the present study was to reveal the virome of bats and their public health relevance. In this research specific antilyssaviral antibodies were detected in blood by virus neutralization test and the presence of lyssavirus genome was investigated using polymerase chain reaction by testing bats oral swabs. Furthermore, the presence of other virus families was investigated by next generation sequencing of oral swab samples, feces and guano. Although the presence of lyssavirus genom was not recorded, for the first time in Croatia antilyssaviral antibodies were detected in 5.7% of tested animals, suggesting that bats present small but not negligible threat to public health. Furthermore, 63 viral families were detected by next generation sequencing, with genomes of adeno-associated virus, ambidensovirus, iflavirus and circo-like virus, however, no other zoonotic pathogens were found