(JP) Strain of hepatitis E similar to that which killed patient is found in piglet

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http://www.japantimes.co.jp/cgi-bin/getarticle.pl5?nn20020723a8.htm

 

Strain of hepatitis E similar to that which killed

patient is found in piglet

 

A strain of hepatitis E virus with DNA closely

resembling that of the HEV found in one of three

patients who died of the disease in Japan has been

found in a pig in Tochigi Prefecture, researchers said

Monday.

 

HEV can spread to both humans and animals, including

pigs and sheep, and the finding is the first

confirmation that an animal in Japan has contracted

the virus.

 

But researchers said the connection between the HEV

found in the pig and the virus contracted by the

patient is still unknown.

 

The HEV was found in blood samples taken from three

pigs, each 2- to 3-months-old, by a research group led

by assistant professor Hiroaki Okamoto of Jichi

Medical School in Tochigi Prefecture.

 

The research group said it collected blood samples

from 186 pigs from 12 sties in the prefecture.

 

The group said it compared the virus found in one of

the three pigs with HEV types found in people and pigs

from Japan and abroad, and discovered the strain was

almost identical to that found in one of the three

patients, who had no record of traveling abroad.

 

HEV is found mainly in developing countries with high

rainfall and poor sanitation, and spreads through

consumption of water or food contaminated with feces

of virus carriers.

 

A study led by Shunji Mishiro, research director at

Toshiba Hospital, confirmed seven people in Hokkaido,

Tokyo and Saitama Prefecture have been infected with

HEV in addition to the three who died.

 

Mishiro analyzed the HEV in the seven, who had never

left the country, and was able to classify the virus

into three strains, leading him to conclude that the

virus entered the country via three routes.

 

Of those who died, one woman from Hokkaido was

diagnosed as suffering from acute hepatitis last year

and received a partial liver transplant from a living

donor, but her condition continued to worsen.

According to Mishiro, HEV was detected in her blood.

 

The Japan Times: July 23, 2002

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