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Home / Equine Research Bank / Viruses / Kinetics of the Equid Herpesvirus 2 and 5 Infections among M...
Viruses2022; 14(4); doi: 10.3390/v14040713

Kinetics of the Equid Herpesvirus 2 and 5 Infections among Mares and Foals from Three Polish National Studs.

Abstract: Equid herpesvirus 2 (EHV-2) and 5 (EHV-5) are two γ-herpesviruses that are commonly detected from horses worldwide, based on several cross-sectional molecular surveys. Comparatively few studies examined the dynamics of γ-herpesvirus infection over time in a group of horses. The aim of the current study was to investigate the dynamics of EHV-2/5 infections among mares and their foals at three Polish national studs with different breeds of horses: Arabians, Thoroughbreds and Polish Konik horses. Nasal swabs were collected from each of 38 mare-foal pairs monthly for a period of 6 to 8 months. Virus-specific quantitative PCR assays were used to determine the viral load of EHV-2 and EHV-5 in each sample. All 76 horses sampled were positive for EHV-2 or EHV-5 on at least one sampling occasion. The majority (73/76, 96%) were infected with both EHV-2 and EHV-5. In general, the mean load of viral DNA was higher in samples from foals than from mares, but similar for EHV-2 and EHV-5 at most sampling occasions. There was, however, a considerable variability in the viral DNA load between samples collected at different times from the same foal, as well as between samples from different foals. The latter was more apparent for EHV-2 than for EHV-5. All foals became infected with both viruses early in life, before weaning, and remained positive on all, or most, subsequent samplings. The virus shedding by mares was more intermittent, indicating the existence of age-related differences. Overall, the data presented extend our knowledge of EHV-2/5 epidemiology among mares and foals.
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Publication Date: 2022-03-29 PubMed ID: 35458443PubMed Central: PMC9031536DOI: 10.3390/v14040713Google Scholar: Lookup
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Summary

This research summary has been generated with artificial intelligence and may contain errors and omissions. Refer to the original study to confirm details provided. Submit correction.

The research study focuses on understanding the dynamics of Equid herpesvirus 2 (EHV-2) and 5 (EHV-5) infections in mares and their foals from different breeds, at three Polish national stud farms over time.

Dynamics of EHV-2/5 Infections

  • The study aimed to investigate the infection dynamics between EHV-2 and 5 in different horse breeds in Poland – Arabians, Thoroughbreds and Polish Konik horses.
  • Virus-specific quantitative PCR assays were used to determine the viral load of EHV-2 and EHV-5 in each sample collected.
  • In total, 76 horses (38 mare-foal pairs) were involved in the study. Out of these, all horses were found to have at least one instance of either EHV-2 or EHV-5.
  • Results showed a heavy prevalence of EHV-2 and 5 among the sampled horses, with 96% (73 out of 76) found to be infected by both viruses at some point.

Variances in Viral Loads

  • The mean viral DNA load was observed to be higher in samples taken from foals than from mares, however, the load was similar for both types of viruses across sampling occasions.
  • Samples collected from the same foal at different times showed considerable variability in viral DNA load, as well as between samples from different foals.
  • Higher variability in viral DNA loads was detected for EHV-2 than for EHV-5.

Age-Related Differences in Virus Shedding

  • All foals became infected with both viruses early in life, before weaning, and remained positive during most of the subsequent samplings.
  • Viral shedding in mares was found to be more intermittent, highlighting the existence of age-related differences in virus shedding.

Outcome of the Study

  • The presented data from the current study added further insights into the epidemiology of EHV-2/5 in mare and foal cohorts.
  • The study underscores the high prevalence of EHV-2/5 in the horse population and points towards the need for further investigation to better understand the infection dynamics over time.

Cite This Article

APA
Stasiak K, Dunowska M, Rola J. (2022). Kinetics of the Equid Herpesvirus 2 and 5 Infections among Mares and Foals from Three Polish National Studs. Viruses, 14(4). https://doi.org/10.3390/v14040713

Publication

Viruses
ISSN: 1999-4915
NlmUniqueID: 101509722
Country: Switzerland
Language: English
Volume: 14
Issue: 4

Researcher Affiliations

Stasiak, Karol
  • Department of Virology, National Veterinary Research Institute, 24-100 Pulawy, Poland.
Dunowska, Magdalena
  • School of Veterinary Science, Massey University, Palmerston North 4442, New Zealand.
Rola, Jerzy
  • Department of Virology, National Veterinary Research Institute, 24-100 Pulawy, Poland.

MeSH Terms

  • Animals
  • Cross-Sectional Studies
  • DNA, Viral / genetics
  • Female
  • Herpesviridae Infections
  • Herpesvirus 1, Equid / genetics
  • Herpesvirus 4, Equid / genetics
  • Horse Diseases
  • Horses
  • Kinetics
  • Poland / epidemiology
  • Rhadinovirus / genetics

Conflict of Interest Statement

The authors declare no conflict of interest.

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Citations

This article has been cited 2 times.
  1. Stasiak K, Dunowska M, Rola J. Genetic Diversity of Equid Herpesvirus 5 in Temporal Samples from Mares and Their Foals at Three Polish National Studs. Int J Mol Sci 2025 Aug 27;26(17).
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  2. Badr C, Souiai O, Arbi M, El Behi I, Essaied MS, Khosrof I, Benkahla A, Chabchoub A, Ghram A. Epidemiological and Phylogeographic Study of Equid Herpesviruses in Tunisia. Pathogens 2022 Sep 5;11(9).
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