Porcine epidemic diarrhea (PED), a serious and highly contagious swine disease, is characterized by severe diarrhea and dehydration in suckling piglets. The etiologic agent, porcine epidemic diarrhea virus (PEDV), is an enveloped, single-stranded RNA virus (family Coronaviridae, order Nidovirales). The viral disease was discovered in the United Kingdom in 1971 and subsequently reported in many swine-producing countries in Europe and Asia. Although most sow herds previously had received CV777-based inactivated vaccine, a large-scale outbreak of PED has been associated with high rates of illness and death in suckling piglets in China since late 2010, resulting in substantial economic losses.
We collected 217 piglets (126 alive, 91 dead) with diarrhea from 42 farms in Shandong Province, China, during November 2010–April 2012. To determine the etiologic agent of the outbreak, we analyzed samples of intestine and its contents. A total of 175 (80.6%) samples were PEDV positive, indicating that PEDV was the dominant pathogen for this diarrheal outbreak. Other pathogens also were identified: porcine transmissible gastroenteritis virus (8.3%), rotavirus (3.7%), and Escherichia coli (3.2%). Furthermore, 8.1% of pigs with diarrhea were co-infected by 2 pathogens. Three PEDV field strains (ZB, YS, and SH) were isolated from different farms where 100% of sucking piglets had diarrhea. The virus isolates were plaque-purified once in Vero cells. The spike protein (S), encoded by S gene of PEDV, plays a pivotal role in cell adsorption, membrane fusion, and induction of neutralizing antibodies. The full-length S genes of 3 isolates were amplified by reverse transcription PCR with 2 pairs of primers and sequenced to identify the genetic variation of the isolates.
Emerging Infectious Diseases
October 15, 2013
Original web page at Emerging Infectious Diseases