Molecular detection and genetic characteristics of equine herpesvirus in Korea

Min Goo Seo, In Ohk Ouh, Sang Kyu Lee, Jong Seok Lee, Oh Deog Kwon, Dongmi Kwak

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

8 Scopus citations

Abstract

Respiratory diseases cause significant economic losses (especially in the horse racing industry). The present study describes the detection and genetic characteristics of equine herpesvirus (EHV) from a total of 1497 samples from clinically healthy horses in Korea, including 926 blood samples, 187 lung tissues, and 384 nasal swabs. EHV‐2 and EHV‐5 were detected in 386 (41.7%; 95% CI: 38.5–44.9) and 201 (21.7%; 95% CI: 19.1–24.4) blood samples, respectively, and in 25 (13.4%; 95% CI: 8.5–18.2) and 35 (18.7%; 95% CI: 13.1–24.3) lung tissues, respectively. EHV‐1 and EHV‐4 were not detected in either blood or lung tissues. EHV‐1, EHV‐2, and EHV‐5 were detected in 46 (12.0%; 95% CI: 8.7–15.2), 21 (5.5%; 95% CI: 3.2–7.7), and 43 (11.2%; 95% CI: 8.0–14.4) nasal swabs, respectively. EHV‐4 was not detected in nasal swabs. Co‐infection with EHV‐2 and EHV‐5 was detected in 11.6% (107/926) of the blood samples and 6.4% (12/187) of lung tissues. In nasal swabs, co‐infection with EHV‐1, EHV‐2, and EHV‐5 was detected in 0.8% (3/384) of samples. Phylogenetic analysis of the glycoprotein B gene showed that EHV‐1, EHV‐2, and EHV‐5 strains demonstrated significant genetic diversity in Korea, with a nucleotide sequence identity among them that ranged from 95.7% to 100% for EHV‐1, 96.2%–100% for EHV‐2, and 93.8%–99.3% for EHV‐ 5. These results are the first phylogenetic analyses of EHV‐1 in Korea in nasal swabs from a nationwide population of clinically healthy horses. Both EHV‐2 and EHV‐5 from blood, lung tissues, and nasal swabs were also detected.

Original languageEnglish
Article number110
JournalPathogens
Volume9
Issue number2
DOIs
StatePublished - Feb 2020

Keywords

  • EHV‐1
  • EHV‐2
  • EHV‐5
  • Herpesvirus
  • Horse
  • Phylogeny

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