Severe fever with thrombocytopenia syndrome virus among domesticated animals, China

Guoyu Niu, Jiandong Li, Mifang Liang, Xiaolin Jiang, Mei Jiang, Haiying Yin, Zhidian Wang, Chuan Li, Quanfu Zhang, Cong Jin, Xianjun Wang, Shujun Ding, Zheng Xing, Shiwen Wang, Zhenqiang Bi, Dexin Li

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

196 Scopus citations

Abstract

To investigate the infections of severe fever with thrombocytopenia syndrome virus (SFTSV) in domesticated animals, we sampled a total of 3,039 animals in 2 counties in Shandong Province, People's Republic of China, from April to November 2011. SFTSV-specific antibodies were detected in 328 (69.5%) of 472 sheep, 509 (60.5%) of 842 cattle, 136 (37.9%) of 359 dogs, 26 (3.1%) of 839 pigs, and 250 (47.4%) of 527 chickens. SFTSV RNA was detected in all sampled animal species, but the prevalence was low, ranging from 1.7% to 5.3%. A cohort study in 38 sheep was conducted to determine when seroconversion to SFTSV occured. SFTSVs were isolated from sheep, cattle, and dogs and shared >95% sequence homology with human isolates from the same disease-endemic regions. These findings demonstrate that natural infections of SFTSV occur in several domesticated animal hosts in disease-endemic areas and that the virus has a wide host range.

Original languageEnglish (US)
Pages (from-to)756-763
Number of pages8
JournalEmerging infectious diseases
Volume19
Issue number5
DOIs
StatePublished - May 2013

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