Ahead of Print -Detection of Circovirus in Foxes with Meningoencephalitis, United Kingdom, 2009–2013 - Volume 21, Number 7—July 2015 - Emerging Infectious Disease journal - CDC

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Ahead of Print -Detection of Circovirus in Foxes with Meningoencephalitis, United Kingdom, 2009–2013 - Volume 21, Number 7—July 2015 - Emerging Infectious Disease journal - CDC

Volume 21, Number 7—July 2015

Dispatch

Detection of Circovirus in Foxes with Meningoencephalitis, United Kingdom, 2009–2013

On This Page

• The Study
• Conclusions
• Suggested Citation

Figures

• Figure 1
• Figure 2

Tables

• Table 1
• Table 2

Technical Appendicies

• Technical Appendix

Downloads

• RIS[TXT - 2 KB]

Steve Bexton, Lidewij C. Wiersma, Sarah Getu, Peter R. van Run, Georges M.G.M. Verjans, Debby Schipper, Claudia M.E. Schapendonk, Rogier Bodewes, Lucy Oldroyd, Bart L. Haagmans, Marion M.P. Koopmans, and Saskia L. Smits 

Author affiliations: RSPCA Norfolk Wildlife Hospital, East Winch, United Kingdom (S. Bexton); Erasmus Medical Center, Rotterdam, the Netherlands (L.C. Wiersma, S. Getu, P.R. van Run, G.M.G.M. Verjans, D. Schipper, C.M.E. Schapendonk, R. Bodewes, B.L. Haagmans, M.M.P. Koopmans, S.L. Smits); Abbey Veterinary Services, Newton Abbot, United Kingdom (L. Oldroyd); National Institute for Public Health and the Environment, Bilthoven, the Netherlands (M.M.P. Koopmans)

Suggested citation for this article

Abstract

A fox circovirus was identified in serum samples from foxes with unexplained neurologic signs by using viral metagenomics. Fox circovirus nucleic acid was localized in histological lesions of the cerebrum by in situ hybridization. Viruses from the family Circoviridae may have neurologic tropism more commonly than previously anticipated.

Circoviruses (family Circoviridae) are nonenveloped, single-stranded, circular DNA (≈2 kb) viruses (1). Two genera, Circovirus and Gyrovirus, are recognized, and an additional genus, Cyclovirus, has been proposed (1,2). Circoviruses have an ambisense genome organization with 2 major inversely arranged open reading frames encoding the rolling circle replication initiator protein gene (Rep) and a capsid protein gene (Cap) (1). A conserved stem–loop structure, required for viral replication, is located between the 5′ ends of the 2 main open reading frames. Circoviruses are thought to exhibit host species specificity and have been detected in various species, including birds, pigs, and dogs (1,3,4). These viruses have been associated with a variety of diseases, including respiratory and enteric disease, dermatitis, and reproductive problems (1,3–5). Recently, many small circular DNA genomes have been described from different hosts by using different methods, including high-throughput sequencing (6). Here we describe the identification, characterization, and prevalence of a newly discovered fox circovirus that was present in serum and brain samples from foxes with unexplained meningoencephalitis in the United Kingdom.

Acknowledgments

This work was partially funded by the European Commission’s COMPARE H2020 project under grant agreement No 643476, the Virgo Consortium, and ZonMW TOP project 91213058.

Dr. Smits is a senior scientist at the Department of Viroscience, Erasmus Medical Center, and at Viroclinics Biosciences B.V. in Rotterdam, the Netherlands. Her primary research interest is virus discovery.

References

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Figures

• Figure 1. Histopathologic features of brain tissue from foxes with possible virus-induced neurologic disease. A) Multifocal, randomly distributed areas of severe encephalitis and meningitis in the cerebrum (original magnification ×40). B)...
• Figure 2. Detection of fox circovirus–specific transcripts in brain tissue of foxes with neurologic disease showing in situ hybridization of cerebrum with fox circovirus replication initiator protein gene–specific probe (original magnification...

Tables

• Table 1. Overview of testing results for fox serum samples used in a study of the detection of circovirus in foxes with meningoencephalitis, United Kingdom, 2009–2013
• Table 2. Univariate statistical analysis of age, sex, disease signs, and circovirus real-time PCR results for foxes in a study of the detection of circovirus in foxes with meningoencephalitis, United Kingdom, 2009–2013

Technical Appendix

• Technical Appendix. Histopathologic features of brain tissues from foxes with possible circovirus-induced neurologic disease and relative abundance of broad taxonomic categories in metagenomic sequences obtained from fox serum samples.  613 KB

Suggested citation for this article: Bexton S, Wiersma LC, Getu S, van Run PR, Verjans GM, Schipper D, et al. Detection of circovirus in foxes with meningoencephalitis, United Kingdom. Emerg Infect Dis. 2015 Jul [date cited]. http://dx.doi.org/10.3201/eid2107.150228

DOI: 10.3201/eid2107.150228