Preprint Case Report Version 1 Preserved in Portico This version is not peer-reviewed

Similarities of Interspecies Transmission of Distemper Virus Infection in Wild Raccoons (Procyon lotor)

Adrian Constantin Stancu
,
Octavian Sorin Voia
* ,
Oana Maria Boldura
,
Sorin Aurelian Pasca
,
Iasmina Luca
ORCID logo ,
Anca S. Hulea
ORCID logo ,
Oana Roxana Ivan
,
Bianca Cornelia Lungu
* ,
Ioan Hutu
Version 1 : Received: 20 April 2023 / Approved: 21 April 2023 / Online: 21 April 2023 (08:59:18 CEST)
Version 2 : Received: 31 May 2023 / Approved: 2 June 2023 / Online: 2 June 2023 (10:31:55 CEST)

A peer-reviewed article of this Preprint also exists.

Stancu, A.C.; Voia, O.S.; Boldura, O.M.; Pasca, S.A.; Luca, I.; Hulea, A.S.; Ivan, O.R.; Dragoescu, A.A.; Lungu, B.C.; Hutu, I. Unusual Canine Distemper Virus Infection in Captive Raccoons (Procyon lotor). Viruses 2023, 15, 1536. Stancu, A.C.; Voia, O.S.; Boldura, O.M.; Pasca, S.A.; Luca, I.; Hulea, A.S.; Ivan, O.R.; Dragoescu, A.A.; Lungu, B.C.; Hutu, I. Unusual Canine Distemper Virus Infection in Captive Raccoons (Procyon lotor). Viruses 2023, 15, 1536.

Abstract

Canine distemper virus (CDV) is a serious contagious disease of canines, cats and sometimes ra-coons. The study included seven raccoons from Timisoara Zoo. The detection of CDV in all raccoons was accomplished using qRT-PCR, but several other exams were also conducted. Clinically, severe digestive disorders were observed, characterized by diarrhea and repeated hematemesis. Pseudomembranous gastroenteritis, congestion and pulmonary edema were found during the ne-cropsy of two racoons. Immunohistochemically, the brown color was highlighted in the examined sectionsand it was present in the cytoplasm of the cells from the germinal centers of the medullary area. Histopathological examination revealed lymphocyte depletion and intranuclear and intracy-toplasmic inclusions in the intestine. Based on the qRT-PCR assay, laboratory tests and lesions ob-served, it was established that the raccoons got infected with CDV, and two of them died as a result. The necropsy, histological lesions and immunohistochemical results are comparable between dogs and racoons. Through the results obtained, it was concluded that the interspecific infection is possible and the epidemiological risk of infection transmitted by racoons to domestic animals, such as dogs and cats, needs to be examined in the future.

Keywords

raccoons; canine distemper virus

Subject

Biology and Life Sciences, Animal Science, Veterinary Science and Zoology

Copyright: This is an open access article distributed under the Creative Commons Attribution License which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.

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