Ecosystem Effects of Variant Rabbit Hemorrhagic Disease Virus, Iberian Peninsula

Delibes‐Mateos, Miguel; Ferreira, Catarina; Carro, Francisco; Escudero, Marco A.; Gortázar, Christian

doi:10.3201/eid2012.140517

Cited by 82 publications

(76 citation statements)

References 8 publications

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“…A long term monitoring program in Spain shows a remarkable decline in rabbit numbers in 2013. A similar trend has also been observed in the main areas inhabited by Iberian lynx [16]. The Iberian lynx, a vertebrate predator, has suffered severe population reduction in the 20th century and is now on the verge of extinction [20,46].…”

Section: Introductionsupporting

confidence: 53%

“…McCallum et al [41] and Stiefsa et al [59] suggested some form of a transmission function which is essential for designing strategy for managing disease threats to animals and human populations. Recently Delibes-Mateos [16] studied the ecosystem effects of new variant RHDV on Iberia peninsula and show how this virus could threaten the conservation of endangered predators. In this work, we propose a new eco-epidemiological model considering disease in prey population (rabbit), which is consumed by predator population (Iberian lynx) and discuss the role of asymptotic transmission rate in the context of eco-epidemiology.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Wave of chaos in a spatial eco-epidemiological system: Generating realistic patterns of patchiness in rabbit–lynx dynamics

Upadhyay

Roy

Venkataraman

et al. 2016

Mathematical Biosciences

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In the present paper, we propose and analyse an eco-epidemiological model with diffusion to study the dynamics of rabbit populations which are consumed by lynx populations. Existence, boundedness, stability and bifurcation analyses of solutions for the proposed rabbit-lynx model are performed. Results show that in the presence of diffusion the model has the potential of exhibiting Turing instability. Numerical results (finite difference and finite element methods) reveal the existence of the wave of chaos and this appears to be a dominant mode of disease dispersal. We also show the mechanism of spatiotemporal pattern formation resulting from the Hopf bifurcation analysis, which can be a potential candidate for understanding the complex spatiotemporal dynamics of eco-epidemiological systems. Implications of the asymptotic transmission rate on disease eradication among rabbit population which in turn enhances the survival of Iberian lynx are discussed.

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Section: Introductionsupporting

confidence: 53%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Wave of chaos in a spatial eco-epidemiological system: Generating realistic patterns of patchiness in rabbit–lynx dynamics

Upadhyay

Roy

Venkataraman

et al. 2016

Mathematical Biosciences

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“…A comparable scenario was also observed in Spain [18]. Although both Oryctolagus cuniculus subspecies are equally affected by RHDV2 [15,18], the susceptibility of the subspecies O. cuniculus algirus acquires special importance considering its restricted distribution to southwest [15] and the dramatic implications of RHDV2 outbreaks on its frail conservation status [16,18]. O. cuniculus algirus is a key prey species for several carnivores, including the Iberian Lynx and the Iberian imperial eagle (Aquila adalberti), both emblematic and endangered species in Portugal, and a population downsize may lead to a series of major ecological and economic problems [19].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 56%

“…However, the RHDV2 emergence in Portugal in 2012 almost decimated the entire wild rabbit population in particular niches of mainland [15,16] and Azores [17]. A comparable scenario was also observed in Spain [18]. Although both Oryctolagus cuniculus subspecies are equally affected by RHDV2 [15,18], the susceptibility of the subspecies O. cuniculus algirus acquires special importance considering its restricted distribution to southwest [15] and the dramatic implications of RHDV2 outbreaks on its frail conservation status [16,18].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 80%

A real time Taqman RT-PCR for the detection of rabbit hemorrhagic disease virus 2 (RHDV2)

Duarte

Carvalho

Barros

et al. 2015

Journal of Virological Methods

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“…Interestingly, early reports describe this virus as moderately virulent, with case fatality rates ranging from 0% to 75% in one small study (48). However, when RHDV2 subsequently spread to multiple countries, including Australia (49-54), it caused a notable reduction in rabbit numbers (55). Recombination of RHDV2 with lagoviruses from other lineages (including RCV-A1-like variants) has also been detected (56), which may be of importance as recombination has been proposed as a factor that facilitated the evolution of high virulence in RHDV (57).…”

Section: Figmentioning

confidence: 99%

Benign Rabbit Caliciviruses Exhibit Evolutionary Dynamics Similar to Those of Their Virulent Relatives

Mahar

Nicholson

Eden

et al. 2016

J Virol

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Two closely related caliciviruses cocirculate in Australia: rabbit hemorrhagic disease virus (RHDV) and rabbit calicivirus Australia 1 (RCV-A1). RCV-A1 causes benign enteric infections in the European rabbit (Oryctolagus cuniculus) in Australia and New Zealand, while its close relative RHDV causes a highly pathogenic infection of the liver in the same host. The comparison of these viruses provides important information on the nature and trajectory of virulence evolution, particularly as highly virulent strains of RHDV may have evolved from nonpathogenic ancestors such as RCV-A1. To determine the evolution of RCV-A1 we sequenced the full-length genomes of 44 RCV-A1 samples isolated from healthy rabbits and compared key evolutionary parameters to those of its virulent relative, RHDV. Despite their marked differences in pathogenicity and tissue tropism, RCV-A1 and RHDV have evolved in a very similar manner. Both viruses have evolved at broadly similar rates, suggesting that their dynamics are largely shaped by high background mutation rates, and both exhibit occasional recombination and an evolutionary environment dominated by purifying selection. In addition, our comparative analysis revealed that there have been multiple changes in both virulence and tissue tropism in the evolutionary history of these and related viruses. Finally, these new genomic data suggest that either RCV-A1 was introduced into Australia after the introduction of myxoma virus as a biocontrol agent in 1950 or there was drastic reduction of the rabbit population, and hence of RCV-A1 genetic diversity, perhaps coincident with the emergence of myxoma virus. IMPORTANCEThe comparison of closely related viruses that differ profoundly in propensity to cause disease in their hosts offers a powerful opportunity to reveal the causes of changes in virulence and to study how such changes alter the evolutionary dynamics of these pathogens. Here we describe such a novel comparison involving two closely related RNA viruses that cocirculate in Australia, the highly virulent rabbit hemorrhagic disease virus (RHDV) and the nonpathogenic rabbit calicivirus Australia 1 (RCV-A1). Both viruses infect the European rabbit, but they differ in virulence, tissue tropism, and mechanisms of transmission. Surprisingly, and despite these fundamental differences, RCV-A1 and RHDV have evolved at very similar (high) rates and with strong purifying selection. Furthermore, candidate key mutations were identified that may play a role in virulence and/or tissue tropism and therefore warrant further investigation. R evealing the factors that determine the evolution of virulence in viruses and identifying how changes in virulence might impact viral evolutionary dynamics are key queries in the study of infectious disease evolution. Although there is a large body of work on revealing the relationship between virulence and transmissibility, most studies of virulence evolution involve the retrospective analysis of single viruses (1-4). However, the comparison of closely related...

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Ecosystem Effects of Variant Rabbit Hemorrhagic Disease Virus, Iberian Peninsula

Cited by 82 publications

References 8 publications

Wave of chaos in a spatial eco-epidemiological system: Generating realistic patterns of patchiness in rabbit–lynx dynamics

Wave of chaos in a spatial eco-epidemiological system: Generating realistic patterns of patchiness in rabbit–lynx dynamics

A real time Taqman RT-PCR for the detection of rabbit hemorrhagic disease virus 2 (RHDV2)

Benign Rabbit Caliciviruses Exhibit Evolutionary Dynamics Similar to Those of Their Virulent Relatives

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