Vet World Vol.13 March-2020 Article-15
Research Article
Veterinary World, 13(3): 495-501
https://doi.org/10.14202/vetworld.2020.495-501
Molecular and cellular evidence of natural Venezuelan equine encephalitis virus infection in frugivorous bats in Colombia
2. Faculty of Veterinary Medicine and Animal, Institute for Biological Research in the Tropics, University of Córdoba, Colombia.
3. University of Córdoba, Colombia.
4. Faculty of Veterinary Medicine and Animal, Institute of Biological Research of the Tropics, University of Córdoba, Colombia.
5. ICA Diagnostic Center - Córdoba, Colombia.
6. Faculty of Health Sciences, University of Córdoba, Colombia.
7. Center for Virological Research, University of Sao Paulo, Riberao Preto, Brazil.
Background and Aim: Venezuelan equine encephalitis virus (VEEV) is an alphavirus that causes encephalitis with a high impact on public health in Latin America. However, only in Guatemala, Trinidad and Tobago, and Mexico have found antibodies in VEEV in bats, using immunohistochemistry, the sensitivity and specificity are improved; thus, it is better for demonstrating natural infection in bats as potential hosts. This study aimed to determine the presence of VEEV in tissues of frugivorous bats.
Materials and Methods: A prospective descriptive cross-sectional study with a non-probabilistic sampling was carried out in 12 localities of Córdoba and Sucre area of the Colombian Caribbean. Two hundred and eighty-six bats were captured using fog nets, and the specimens according to taxonomic keys were classified. According to the Ethics Committee of the University of Córdoba, the bats were treated with analgesics and anesthetics. Blood samples were taken and then euthanized to obtain tissues and organs which were preserved in liquid N2 at –196°C. A portion of each organ was fixed in 10% buffered formalin for the detection of antigens by immunohistochemistry. Several pathological anatomy analyses were performed to determine the histological characteristics of tissue lesions of frugivorous bats naturally infected with the VEEV.
Results: Of the 286 bats captured, 23 species were identified. In samples of the brain, spleen, and lung of two frugivorous bats (2/286=0.70%) Artibeus planirostris and Sturnira lilium, the presence of VEEV was confirmed by immunohistochemistry.
Conclusion: A fragment of the nsP4 non-structural protein gene corresponding to the alphavirus was amplified. Two samples were positive (2/286=0.70%) in frugivorous bats; A. planirostris (code GenBank: MG820274) and S. lilium (code GenBank: MG820275). The present study showed the first molecular evidence and cellular evidence (histopathology and immunohistochemistry) of natural VEEV infection in frugivorous bats in Colombia; these bats could be a host of this zoonosis. Keywords: Alphavirus infections, Chiroptera, pathology.
Keywords: Alphavirus infections, Chiroptera, pathology.
How to cite this article: Guzmán C, Calderón A, Oviedo T, Mattar S, Castañeda J, Rodriguez V, Figueiredo LTM (2020) Molecular and cellular evidence of natural Venezuelan equine encephalitis virus infection in frugivorous bats in Colombia, Veterinary World, 13(3): 495-501.
Received: 22-05-2019 Accepted: 22-01-2020 Published online: 16-03-2020
Corresponding author: Salim Mattar E-mail: mattarsalim@hotmail.com
DOI: 10.14202/vetworld.2020.495-501
Copyright: Guzmán, et al. This article is an open access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/), which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided you give appropriate credit to the original author(s) and the source, provide a link to the Creative Commons license, and indicate if changes were made. The Creative Commons Public Domain Dedication waiver (http:// creativecommons.org/publicdomain/zero/1.0/) applies to the data made available in this article, unless otherwise stated.