Papillomavirus infection of roe deer in the Czech Republic and fibropapilloma-associated levels of metallothionein, zinc, and oxidative stress

Abstract

The present study aimed at the aetiological diagnosis of skin tumours of roe deer (Capreolus capreolus) in the Czech Republic. A total of 33 roe deer specimens showing skin masses were sampled for histopathology, virus detection and identification using polymerase chain reaction (PCR) and deoxyribonucleic acid sequence (DNA) analysis, and to investigate fibropapillomaassociated levels of metallothionein, zinc and oxidative stress in 2012 and 2013. Ticks (Ixodes ricinus) and deer keds (Lipoptena cervi) were also collected and pooled from sampled game specimens. Ticks found on dogs in hunting grounds under study were pooled into another sample. Skin tumours, ranging from 2 to 10 per inspected specimen and 2 to 5 cm in size, were classified as fibropapillomas by histopathology. All 33 viral-infection-suspected skin samples from roe deer in South Moravia and South Bohemia were PCR positive. The nucleotide sequences of PCR products were 100% homologous to the Western roe deer papillomavirus 1 isolate CcPV-1. Ticks and deer keds from positive roe deer and ticks from dogs were PCR and DNA sequence positive for the roe deer papillomavirus. Viral DNA was also demonstrated in one blood sample from a roe deer female. Differences in metallothionein, zinc, taurine and electrochemical index among samples from lesions and normal skin of affected roe deer and negative controls from papillomavirus-non-infected animals were non-significant. While we have demonstrated circulation of specific roe deer papillomavirus in the Czech Republic that results in multiple fibropapillomatous skin tumours, many ecological and epidemiological issues of this wildlife disease still remain unanswered.

Genetics and metabolic deregulation following cancer initiation: A world to explore

“…Both viruses have common genetic, morphological and pathogenic characteristics [127], can be disseminated by hematology pathway [28,[128][129][130][131], turning then a public health problem [132]. Moreover, BPV is considered a study prototype of oncogenic process [133].…”

Bos taurus papillomavirus activity in peripheral blood mononuclear cells: demonstrating a productive infection

“…Furthermore, another BPV transmission pathway was described by Stocco dos Santos et al (1998), who showed the presence of BPV-2 DNA in peripheral blood and reported chromosome instability. The same authors also suggest that the peripheral blood could act as a viral disseminator (Král et al, 2015). Recent studies have reinforced the role of peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs) as virus carriers, showing that BPV is present in CD4+ and CD8+ lymphocytes (Roperto et al, 2008;Araldi et al, 2014a) and the detection of BPV activity in PBMCs by the comet assay (Araldi et al, 2013a) and flow cytometry (Roperto et al, 2011).…”

A Comprehensive Study of Cutaneous Fibropapillomatosis in Free-Ranging Roe Deer (Capreolus capreolus) and Red Deer (Cervus elaphus): from Clinical Manifestations to Whole-Genome Sequencing of Papillomaviruses

“…Meanwhile, in red deer, the lesions, characteristic for cutaneous fibropapillomatosis associated with the CePV1v infections, appeared rough (with a cauliflower-like appearance), pigmented and hairless and were located in the inner hind leg or the abdominal region. According to previous reports [15][16][17]21], older roe deer appear to be more prone to disease manifestation than younger animals, while in red deer, fibropapillomas are mostly found in young animals. A similar pattern was observed in this study.…”

“…The only characterisation of the complete genome of the CcaPV-1 type belonging to the Deltapapillomavirus genus was carried out in Hungary by Erdélyi et al [20], who were the first to link the virus to the development of fibropapillomatosis in roe deer. A sporadic occurrence of fibropapillomatosis in red and roe deer was reported in Spain, France, England, Austria [16,17], the Czech Republic [21], Portugal [11] and Italy [14]. Scagliarini et al [14] were the first to publish the entire genome of a PV (CePV-1v) belonging to the Deltapapillomavirus genus in red deer with expressed clinical symptoms.…”