Herpesvirus Infection in Tortoises (<i>Malacochersus tornieri</i> and <i>Testudo horsfieldii</i>)

Une, Yumi; Uemura, Kayoko; Nakano, Yoshinobu; Kamiie, J.; Ishibashi, Tôru; Nomura, Yasuo

doi:10.1354/vp.36-6-624

Cited by 38 publications

(34 citation statements)

References 4 publications

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“…Herpesvirus-like particles have been seen using electron microscopy. [3][4][5][6][7]9,10,11,14,18,25 Herpesviruses have also been isolated from several of these cases. 11 Despite numerous descriptive reports, fulfillment of Koch's postulates demonstrating a causal relationship between herpesvirus and stomatitis-rhinitis in tortoises has not been reported.…”

Section: Experimental Transmission Of a Herpesvirus In Greek Tortoisementioning

confidence: 99%

Experimental Transmission of a Herpesvirus in Greek Tortoises (Testudo graeca)

et al. 2004

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Abstract. An experimental transmission study aimed at fulfilling Koch's postulates for a herpesvirus-associated stomatitis-rhinitis in Mediterranean tortoises is presented. Clinical, pathologic, serologic, and molecular studies were performed linking tortoise herpesvirus with the pathogenesis of stomatitis-rhinitis. Four adult Greek tortoises received either intranasally or intramuscularly two tortoise herpesvirus isolates by primary experimental infection and secondary challenge 11 months later. After the primary experimental infection and the secondary challenge, clinical signs of illness developed, which included conjunctivitis, diphtheritic oral plaques, and oral discharge. At 4 weeks after the secondary challenge, all tortoises were humanely euthanatized and evaluated. Although neutralizing antibodies developed after the primary experimental infection, they apparently did not prevent the later development of recurrent clinical signs. Polymerase chain reaction (PCR) and reverse transcription-PCR analyses allowed sensitive characterization of the systemic distribution of the herpesvirus DNA sequences and their presence in the cranial nerves and brains of the infected tortoises. Despite the failure to recover the herpesviruses used in the transmission study, the findings support the premise that tortoise herpesvirus is a primary pathogen of Greek tortoises.

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Section: Experimental Transmission Of a Herpesvirus In Greek Tortoisementioning

confidence: 99%

Experimental Transmission of a Herpesvirus in Greek Tortoises (Testudo graeca)

et al. 2004

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“…Herpesviral infections have been reported in a variety of tortoise species [2,4,6,7,9,12,13]. At least three large outbreaks have been documented [6,7,13] and in one case the morbidity level was reported to be more than 50% [7].…”

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“…At least three large outbreaks have been documented [6,7,13] and in one case the morbidity level was reported to be more than 50% [7]. Several virological and serological surveys have also revealed a high prevalence of herpesvirus infections in tortoises [4,8].…”

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Polymerase Chain Reaction(PCR) for the Detection of Herpesvirus in Tortoises.

Une¹,

Murakami²,

Uemura³

et al. 2000

J. Vet. Med. Sci.

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ABSTRACT. A polymerase chain reaction (PCR)-based method using a herpesvirus consensus primer was assessed for the identification of herpesviral infections in tortoises. A single band of about 230 bp was detected in PCR products from two out of twenty swabs taken from the oral cavity, three out of three paraffin-embedded tissue sections from the liver (two cases) and oral mucosa (one case), and one out of two fresh tissue samples from the oral mucosa. Nucleotide sequencing of these PCR products indicated that the herpesvirus present in these tortoises might belong to the alphaherpesvirinae. PCR using swabs and biopsy tissues was a sensitive and highly specific method for the diagnosis of herpesviral infections in tortoises.

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“…Weight loss, cachexia, central nervous symptoms (such as circling and head tilt), and death are observed in advanced stages of the disease. The virus has been isolated from several tissues, suggesting a broad tropism (8,11,14,15). With the goal of controlling the threat that TeHV-3 poses to tortoise populations, various inactivated vaccine candidates have been tested, but none has proved efficacious (16,17).…”

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The Genome of a Tortoise Herpesvirus (Testudinid Herpesvirus 3) Has a Novel Structure and Contains a Large Region That Is Not Required for Replication In Vitro or Virulence In Vivo

Gandar

Wilkie

Gatherer

et al. 2015

J Virol

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Testudinid herpesvirus 3 (TeHV-3) is the causative agent of a lethal disease affecting several tortoise species. The threat that this virus poses to endangered animals is focusing efforts on characterizing its properties, in order to enable the development of prophylactic methods. We have sequenced the genomes of the two most studied TeHV-3 strains (1976 and 4295). TeHV-3 strain 1976 has a novel genome structure and is most closely related to a turtle herpesvirus, thus supporting its classification into genus Scutavirus, subfamily Alphaherpesvirinae, family Herpesviridae. The sequence of strain 1976 also revealed viral counterparts of cellular interleukin-10 and semaphorin, which have not been described previously in members of subfamily Alphaherpesvirinae. TeHV-3 strain 4295 is a mixture of three forms (m1, m2, and M), in which, in comparison to strain 1976, the genomes exhibit large, partially overlapping deletions of 12.5 to 22.4 kb. Viral subclones representing these forms were isolated by limiting dilution assays, and each replicated in cell culture comparably to strain 1976. With the goal of testing the potential of the three forms as attenuated vaccine candidates, strain 4295 was inoculated intranasally into Hermann's tortoises (Testudo hermanni). All inoculated subjects died, and PCR analyses demonstrated the ability of the m2 and M forms to spread and invade the brain. In contrast, the m1 form was detected in none of the organs tested, suggesting its potential as the basis of an attenuated vaccine candidate. Our findings represent a major step toward characterizing TeHV-3 and developing prophylactic methods against it. IMPORTANCETestudinid herpesvirus 3 (TeHV-3) causes a lethal disease in tortoises, several species of which are endangered. We have characterized the viral genome and used this information to take steps toward developing an attenuated vaccine. We have sequenced the genomes of two strains (1976 and 4295), compared their growth in vitro, and investigated the pathogenesis of strain 4295, which consists of three deletion mutants. The major findings are that (i) TeHV-3 has a novel genome structure, (ii) its closest relative is a turtle herpesvirus, (iii) it contains interleukin-10 and semaphorin genes (the first time these have been reported in an alphaherpesvirus), (iv) a sizeable region of the genome is not required for viral replication in vitro or virulence in vivo, and (v) one of the components of strain 4295, which has a deletion of 22.4 kb, exhibits properties indicating that it may serve as the starting point for an attenuated vaccine. T he orderHerpesvirales contains a large number of enveloped, double-stranded DNA viruses that share structural, genetic, and biological properties and is divided into three families infecting a wide range of hosts (1). One of these families, the Herpesviridae, contains viruses infecting mammals, birds, or reptiles and is subdivided into three subfamilies, the Alpha-, Beta-, and Gammaherpesvirinae (2). Members of these subfamilies are referred to ...

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Herpesvirus Infection in Tortoises (Malacochersus tornieri and Testudo horsfieldii)

Cited by 38 publications

References 4 publications

Experimental Transmission of a Herpesvirus in Greek Tortoises (Testudo graeca)

Experimental Transmission of a Herpesvirus in Greek Tortoises (Testudo graeca)

Polymerase Chain Reaction(PCR) for the Detection of Herpesvirus in Tortoises.

The Genome of a Tortoise Herpesvirus (Testudinid Herpesvirus 3) Has a Novel Structure and Contains a Large Region That Is Not Required for Replication In Vitro or Virulence In Vivo

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