Characterization of Chronic Hepatitis E Virus Infection in Immunocompetent Rabbits
Chunnan Liang,
Chenyan Zhao,
Tianlong Liu,
Bo Liu,
Zhiguo Liu,
Huili Huang,
Wei Liu,
Minghai Zhao,
Nan Xu,
Qiong Lu,
Jianhui Nie,
Li Zhang,
Weijin Huang,
Ruiping She,
Youchun Wang
Affiliations
Chunnan Liang
National Rodent Laboratory Animal Resources Center, Institute for Laboratory Animal Resources, National Institutes for Food and Drug Control (NIFDC), Beijing 102629, China
Chenyan Zhao
Division of HIV/AIDS and Sex-Transmitted Virus Vaccines, Institute for Biological Product Control, National Institutes for Food and Drug Control (NIFDC), Beijing 102629, China
Tianlong Liu
Laboratory of Animal Pathology and Public Health, Key Laboratory of Zoonosis of Ministry of Agriculture, College of Veterinary Medicine, China Agricultural University, Beijing 100193, China
Bo Liu
Laboratory of Animal Pathology and Public Health, Key Laboratory of Zoonosis of Ministry of Agriculture, College of Veterinary Medicine, China Agricultural University, Beijing 100193, China
Zhiguo Liu
National Rodent Laboratory Animal Resources Center, Institute for Laboratory Animal Resources, National Institutes for Food and Drug Control (NIFDC), Beijing 102629, China
Huili Huang
National Rodent Laboratory Animal Resources Center, Institute for Laboratory Animal Resources, National Institutes for Food and Drug Control (NIFDC), Beijing 102629, China
Wei Liu
National Rodent Laboratory Animal Resources Center, Institute for Laboratory Animal Resources, National Institutes for Food and Drug Control (NIFDC), Beijing 102629, China
Minghai Zhao
National Rodent Laboratory Animal Resources Center, Institute for Laboratory Animal Resources, National Institutes for Food and Drug Control (NIFDC), Beijing 102629, China
Nan Xu
Division of HIV/AIDS and Sex-Transmitted Virus Vaccines, Institute for Biological Product Control, National Institutes for Food and Drug Control (NIFDC), Beijing 102629, China
Qiong Lu
Division of HIV/AIDS and Sex-Transmitted Virus Vaccines, Institute for Biological Product Control, National Institutes for Food and Drug Control (NIFDC), Beijing 102629, China
Jianhui Nie
Division of HIV/AIDS and Sex-Transmitted Virus Vaccines, Institute for Biological Product Control, National Institutes for Food and Drug Control (NIFDC), Beijing 102629, China
Li Zhang
Division of HIV/AIDS and Sex-Transmitted Virus Vaccines, Institute for Biological Product Control, National Institutes for Food and Drug Control (NIFDC), Beijing 102629, China
Weijin Huang
Division of HIV/AIDS and Sex-Transmitted Virus Vaccines, Institute for Biological Product Control, National Institutes for Food and Drug Control (NIFDC), Beijing 102629, China
Ruiping She
Laboratory of Animal Pathology and Public Health, Key Laboratory of Zoonosis of Ministry of Agriculture, College of Veterinary Medicine, China Agricultural University, Beijing 100193, China
Youchun Wang
Division of HIV/AIDS and Sex-Transmitted Virus Vaccines, Institute for Biological Product Control, National Institutes for Food and Drug Control (NIFDC), Beijing 102629, China
Chronic hepatitis E virus (HEV) infection is frequently reported in immunocompromised patients, but has also been increasingly reported in non-immunocompromised individuals. We characterized the course of chronic HEV infection in immunocompetent rabbits. In two independent experiments, 40 specific-pathogen-free rabbits were infected with a rabbit HEV genotype 3 strain in serial diluted titers (108 to 104 copies/mL). Serum and fecal samples were collected weekly and were tested for HEV RNA, antigen, anti-HEV and liver enzymes. Rabbits that spontaneously cleared the infection before 10 weeks post-inoculation (wpi) were kept to the end of the study as recovery control. Liver tissues were collected from HEV-infected rabbits at 5, 10 and 26 wpi for histopathological analysis. Nineteen rabbits (47.5%) developed chronic HEV infection with persistent viraemia and fecal HEV shedding for >6 months. Seroconversion to anti-HEV was observed in 84.2% (16/19) of the chronically infected rabbits. Serum levels of aminotransferase were persistently elevated in most of the rabbits. Characterizations of chronic HEV infection in immunocompetent settings could be recapitulated in rabbits, which can serve as a valuable tool for future studies on pathogenesis.
