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Equine coronavirus: An emerging enteric virus of adult horses
Author(s) -
Pusterla N.,
Vin R.,
Leutenegger C.,
Mittel L. D.,
Divers T. J.
Publication year - 2016
Publication title -
equine veterinary education
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.304
H-Index - 31
eISSN - 2042-3292
pISSN - 0957-7734
DOI - 10.1111/eve.12453
Subject(s) - medicine , coronavirus , immunology , transmission (telecommunications) , disease , virology , pathology , infectious disease (medical specialty) , covid-19 , electrical engineering , engineering
Summary Equine coronavirus ( EC oV) is an emerging virus associated clinically and epidemiologically with fever, depression, anorexia and less frequently colic and diarrhoea in adult horses. Sporadic cases and outbreaks have been reported with increased frequency since 2010 from Japan, the USA and more recently from Europe. A faeco‐oral transmission route is suspected and clinical or asymptomatic infected horses appear to be responsible for direct and indirect transmission of EC oV. A presumptive clinical diagnosis of EC oV infection may be suggested by clinical presentation, haematological abnormalities such as leucopenia due to lymphopenia and/or neutropenia. Confirmation of EC oV infection is provided by specific EC oV nucleic acid detection in faeces by quantitative PCR ( qPCR ) or demonstration of coronavirus antigen by immunohistochemistry or electron microscopy in intestinal biopsy material obtained ante or post mortem . The disease is generally self‐limiting and horses typically recover with symptomatic supportive care. Complications associated with disruption of the gastrointestinal barrier have been reported in some infected horses and include endotoxaemia, septicaemia and hyperammonaemia‐associated encephalopathy. Although specific immunoprophylactic measures have been shown to be effective in disease prevention for closely‐related coronaviruses such as bovine coronavirus ( BC oV), such strategies have yet not been investigated for horses and disease prevention is limited to basic biosecurity protocols. This article reviews current knowledge concerning the aetiology, epidemiology, clinical signs, diagnosis, pathology, treatment and prevention of EC oV infection in adult horses.