Hepatitis E Virus Genotype 3, Bolivia | CDC EID > Volume 17, Number 8–August 2011

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Volume 17, Number 8–August 2011
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Hepatitis E Virus Genotype 3 in Humans and Swine, Bolivia

Maria Chiara Dell'Amico, Comments to Author Annalisa Cavallo, José Luis Gonzales, Sara Irene Bonelli, Ybar Valda, Angela Pieri, Higinio Segundo, Ramón Ibañez, Antonia Mantella, Filippo Bartalesi, Francesco Tolari, and Alessandro Bartoloni

Author affiliations: Università degli Studi di Pisa, Pisa, Italy (M.C. Dell'Amico, F. Tolari); Università degli Studi di Firenze, Firenze, Italy (A. Cavallo, S.I. Bonelli, A. Pieri, A. Mantella, F. Bartalesi, A. Bartoloni); Laboratorio de Investigación y Diagnóstico Veterinario, Santa Cruz, Bolivia (J.L. Gonzales, Y. Valda, R. Ibañez); and Distrito de Salud Cordillera, Santa Cruz (H. Segundo)

Suggested citation for this article

Abstract
We determined the seroprevalence of hepatitis E virus (HEV) in persons in 2 rural communities in southeastern Bolivia and the presence of HEV in human and swine fecal samples. HEV seroprevalence was 6.3%, and HEV genotype 3 strains with high sequence homology were detected.

Hepatitis E virus (HEV) is the causative agent of epidemic and sporadic acute hepatitis in areas with poor sanitary conditions. The infection is endemic to southeast and central Asia, the Middle East, northern and western parts of Africa, and North America (1). Sporadic cases of HEV infection have also been reported in industrialized countries, usually associated with traveling in disease-endemic areas. Transmission of HEV occurs predominantly by the fecal–oral route, mostly through contaminated drinking water (1). Several animal sources of HEV have been identified (2). The first strain of animal origin was identified in 1997 in swine in the United States (3). Subsequently, several studies documented that swine are the largest reservoir of HEV (4–7).

Little data are available on HEV seroprevalence in countries in South America (8). The first study of HEV infection in Bolivia was a seroprevalence survey conducted in 1997 in rural southeastern Bolivia (9). The purposes of this study were to reassess HEV seroprevalence in humans in the same area and identify the virus in humans and swine.

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Suggested Citation for this Article

Dell'Amico MC, Cavallo A, Gonzales JL, Bonelli SI, Valda Y, Pieri A, et al. Hepatitis E virus genotype 3 in humans and swine, Bolivia. Emerg Infect Dis [serial on the Internet]. 2011 Aug [date cited]. http://www.cdc.gov/EID/content/17/8/100769.htm

DOI: 10.3201/eid1708.100769

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Maria Chiara Dell'Amico, Dipartimento di Patologia Animale, Profilassi e Igiene degli Alimenti, Università degli Studi di Pisa, Viale delle Piagge 2, 56124, Pisa, Italy; email: mcdellamico@hotmail.com