title: Epizootic canine distemper virus infection among wild mammals.
abstract: In the spring of 2007, seven raccoon dogs and a weasel were captured near the city of Tanabe in Wakayama prefecture, Japan. The causative agent of the animals' death 1-2 days after capture was identified as canine distemper virus (CDV) by virus isolation, immunostaining with an anti-CDV polyclonal antibody, and a commercially available CDV antigen-detection kit. Sequence analysis of hemagglutinin genes indicated the isolated viruses belong to genotype Asia-1 and possess the substitution from tyrosine (Y) to histidine (H) at position 549 that is associated with the spread of CDV to non-canine hosts. A serosurvey for CDV was then conducted among wild animals in the region. The animals assayed consisted of 104 raccoons, 41 wild boars, 19 raccoon dogs, five Sika deer, two badgers, one weasel, one marten, one Siberian weasel and one fox. Virus-neutralization (VN) tests showed that, except for fox and weasel, all of the species assayed had VN antibodies to CDV. Interestingly, 11 of the 41 wild boars (27%) and two of the five Sika deer assayed possessed VN antibodies to CDV. These findings indicate that CDV infection was widespread among wild mammals during this epizootic.
authors.affiliation: Laboratory of Veterinary Microbiology, Faculty of Agriculture, Yamaguchi University, 1677-1 Yoshida, Yamaguchi 753-8515, Japan.
authors.forename: Yuki
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Kameo
authors.forename: Yumiko
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Nagao
authors.forename: Yohei
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Nishio
authors.forename: Hiroshi
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Shimoda
authors.forename: Hitoshi
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Nakano
authors.forename: Kazuo
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Suzuki
authors.forename: Yumi
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Une
authors.forename: Hiroshi
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Sato
authors.forename: Masayuki
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Shimojima
authors.forename: Ken
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Maeda
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D001483:Base Sequence; D003670:Deer / Q000821:virology; D004216:Distemper / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000821:virology; D004217:Distemper Virus, Canine / Q000235:genetics* / Q000302:isolation & purification; D004285:Dogs; D005260:Female; D005589:Foxes / Q000821:virology; D007564:Japan; D008297:Male; D008322:Mammals / Q000821:virology*; D008969:Molecular Sequence Data; D045969:Mustelidae / Q000821:virology; D046031:Raccoon Dogs / Q000821:virology; D011821:Raccoons / Q000821:virology; D034421:Sus scrofa / Q000821:virology