Molecular characterization of encephalomyocarditis virus strains isolated from an African elephant and rats in a French zoo
Open accessAbstract
In November 2013, a fatal encephalomyocarditis virus (EMCV) case in a captive African elephant ( Loxodonta africana) occurred at the Réserve Africaine de Sigean, a zoo in the south of France. Here we report the molecular characterization of the EMCV strains isolated from samples collected from the dead elephant and from 3 rats ( Rattus rattus) captured in the zoo at the same time. The EMCV infection was confirmed by reverse-transcription real-time PCR (RT-rtPCR) and genome sequencing. Complete genome sequencing and sequence alignment indicated that the elephant’s EMCV strain was 98.1–99.9% identical to the rat EMCV isolates at the nucleotide sequence level. Phylogenetic analysis of the ORF, P1, VP1, and 3D sequences revealed that the elephant and rat strains clustered into lineage A of the EMCV 1 group. To our knowledge, molecular characterization of EMCV in France and Europe has not been reported previously in a captive elephant. The full genome analyses of EMCV isolated from an elephant and rats in the same outbreak emphasizes the role of rodents in EMCV introduction and circulation in zoos.
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A previous EMCV outbreak in France showed a similar phylogenetic relationship between isolates from black rats in association with the death of an elephant.
“Similar to this epizootic, a previous outbreak in France also showed a similar phylogenetic relationship between isolates from black rats in association with the death of an elephant [43]”
From Zoological transmission of encephalomyocarditis virus in the United States: Virus evolution, host ecology, and capsid antigenicity derived from an outbreak (2026) · cites this paper as [43]
Black rats are involved in the spread of EMCV to zoo animals on multiple continents.
“The isolation of EMCV from black rats after a zoological outbreak in France, also involving the death of an elephant [28,43], demonstrates that black rats are involved in the spread of the virus to zoo animals on multiple continents.”
From Zoological transmission of encephalomyocarditis virus in the United States: Virus evolution, host ecology, and capsid antigenicity derived from an outbreak (2026) · cites this paper as [43]
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- Authors
- Romey, A., Lamglait, B., Blanchard, Y., Touzain, F., Quenault, H., Relmy, A., Zientara, S., Blaise-Boisseau, S., & Bakkali-Kassimi, L.
- Affiliations
- École Nationale Vétérinaire d'Alfort (FR)
- Centre de Recherche sur l'Environnement Alpin (CH)
- Agence Nationale de Sécurité Sanitaire de l’Alimentation, de l’Environnement et du Travail (FR)
- Unit of Viral Genetics and Biosafety, Ploufragan Laboratory, ANSES, Ploufragan, France
- Animal Health Laboratory, UMR1161 Virology, INRAE, ANSES, ENVA, Paris-Est University, Maisons-Alfort, France
- Venue
- Journal of Veterinary Diagnostic Investigation
- Publisher
- SAGE Publications
- Published
- 2020-12-08
- Volume
- 33
- Issue
- 2
- Pages
- 313-321
- ISSN
- 1040-6387 (ISSN-L)
- 1943-4936
- PMC
- PMC7953090
- OpenAlex
- W3112900788
- Cited by
- 16
- References
- 41
- Citations by year
- 2026: 6 · 2025: 6 · 2024: 1 · 2023: 1 · 2022: 2
- FWCI
- 0.54
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- bronze
- doi.org
- Locations
- Journal of Veterinary Diagnostic Investigation (publishedVersion)
- PubMed Central (publishedVersion)
- PubMed (publishedVersion)
- HAL (submittedVersion)
- Topics
- Life Sciences › Agricultural and Biological Sciences › Animal Science and Zoology › Animal Virus Infections Studies
- Health Sciences › Medicine › Epidemiology › Virology and Viral Diseases
- Health Sciences › Medicine › Cardiology and Cardiovascular Medicine › Viral Infections and Immunology Research
- Keywords
- encephalomyocarditis virus, Loxodonta africana, Rattus rattus, zoo animals, captive wildlife, viral genome sequencing, phylogenetic analysis, wildlife disease outbreak
- MeSH terms
- Animals, Animals, Zoo, Elephants, Encephalomyocarditis virus, Female, France, Cardiovirus Infections, Rats
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