title: Felis catus gammaherpesvirus 1; a widely endemic potential pathogen of domestic cats.
abstract: Felis catus gammaherpesvirus 1 (FcaGHV1), recently discovered in the USA, was detected in domestic cats in Australia (11.4%, 95% confidence interval 5.9-19.1, n=110) and Singapore (9.6%, 95% confidence interval 5.9-14.6, n=176) using qPCR. FcaGHV1 qPCR positive cats were 2.8 times more likely to be sick than healthy. Risk factors for FcaGHV1 detection included being male, increasing age and coinfection with pathogenic retroviruses, feline immunodeficiency virus (FIV) or feline leukaemia virus. FcaGHV1 DNA was detected in multiple tissues from infected cats with consistently high virus loads in the small intestine. FcaGHV1 viral load was significantly higher in FIV-infected cats compared with matched controls, mimicking increased Epstein-Barr virus loads in human immunodeficiency virus-infected humans. FcaGHV1 is endemic in distant geographic regions and is associated with being sick and with coinfections. Horizontal transmission of FcaGHV1 is supported, with biting being a plausible route. A pathogenic role for FcaGHV1 in domestic cats is supported.
authors.affiliation: Valentine Charlton Cat Centre, Faculty of Veterinary Science and Marie Bashir Institute for Infectious Diseases and Biosecurity, University of Sydney, NSW 2006, Australia. Electronic address: julia.beatty@sydney.edu.au.
authors.forename: Julia A
authors.initials: JA
authors.lastname: Beatty
authors.affiliation: Department of Microbiology, Immunology, and Pathology, Colorado State University, Fort Collins, CO 80523, USA.
authors.forename: Ryan M
authors.initials: RM
authors.lastname: Troyer
authors.affiliation: School of Biological Sciences, University of Tasmania, Hobart, Tas 7001, Australia.
authors.forename: Scott
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Carver
authors.affiliation: Valentine Charlton Cat Centre, Faculty of Veterinary Science and Marie Bashir Institute for Infectious Diseases and Biosecurity, University of Sydney, NSW 2006, Australia.
authors.forename: Vanessa R
authors.initials: VR
authors.lastname: Barrs
authors.affiliation: Valentine Charlton Cat Centre, Faculty of Veterinary Science and Marie Bashir Institute for Infectious Diseases and Biosecurity, University of Sydney, NSW 2006, Australia.
authors.forename: Fanny
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Espinasse
authors.affiliation: Valentine Charlton Cat Centre, Faculty of Veterinary Science and Marie Bashir Institute for Infectious Diseases and Biosecurity, University of Sydney, NSW 2006, Australia.
authors.forename: Oliver
authors.initials: O
authors.lastname: Conradi
authors.affiliation: Department of Microbiology, Immunology, and Pathology, Colorado State University, Fort Collins, CO 80523, USA.
authors.forename: Kathryn
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Stutzman-Rodriguez
authors.affiliation: The Animal Doctors Pte Ltd., Singapore.
authors.forename: Cathy C
authors.initials: CC
authors.lastname: Chan
authors.affiliation: School of Veterinary Sciences, University of Bristol, Langford, Bristol BS40 5DU, UK.
authors.forename: Séverine
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Tasker
authors.affiliation: Department of Clinical Sciences, Colorado State University, Fort Collins, CO 80522, USA.
authors.forename: Michael R
authors.initials: MR
authors.lastname: Lappin
authors.affiliation: Department of Microbiology, Immunology, and Pathology, Colorado State University, Fort Collins, CO 80523, USA.
authors.forename: Sue
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: VandeWoude
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D000829:Animals, Domestic / Q000821:virology; D001315:Australia / Q000453:epidemiology; D002371:Cat Diseases / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000821:virology*; D002415:Cats; D019353:Endemic Diseases / Q000662:veterinary*; D005260:Female; D018142:Gammaherpesvirinae / Q000235:genetics / Q000302:isolation & purification / Q000472:pathogenicity / Q000502:physiology*; D006566:Herpesviridae Infections / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000662:veterinary* / Q000821:virology; D008297:Male; D012846:Singapore / Q000453:epidemiology; D014481:United States / Q000453:epidemiology; D019562:Viral Load
keywords: Copathogen; Feline; Gammaherpesvirus; Molecular epidemiology; Transmission