Sequence comparison of complete genome sequences of rustrela virus (RusV) from cats from Sweden, Austria and Germany. (a) Amino acid sequences of the structural polyprotein (p110/sPP) of all known matonaviruses were aligned and a maximum likelihood (ML) phylogenetic tree was calculated (IQ-TREE2 version 2.2.0; FLU+F+I+G4 ; 100,000 ultrafast loads). Bootstrap support values are shown in italics. (b) ML tree of complete or nearly complete genome sequences of RusV from cats with “stunning disease” and all publicly available RusV sequences (IQ-TREE2 version 2.2.0; TIM3+F+I; 100,000 ultrafast runs). Sequences from Sweden, Austria, and Germany are marked in blue, green, and orange, respectively. Sequences from a previously identified German RusV cluster from zoo animals with encephalitis and apparently healthy yellow-necked field mice ( Apodemus flavicollis ) 30 , 31 , 34 are presented in a dotted box. Bootstrap support values are shown on the nodes. (c) Genetic variability of RusV lines from Sweden, Austria and Germany is represented as mean JC69 pairwise distance using sliding window analysis (window: 200 nt; step size: 50 nt). The genomic organization of RusV is shown, highlighting the nonstructural (p200/nsPP) and structural (p110/sPP) polyprotein open reading frames, as well as the mature cleavage products protease (p150), RNA-directed RNA polymerase (p90), capsid protein (C) and glycoproteins E2 and E1. credit: bioRxiv (2022). DOI: 10.1101/2022.06.01.494454
A large team of researchers linked to multiple institutions in Germany, Austria and Sweden have discovered the virus behind the mysterious “stunner” disease killing cats across Europe. The group has written a paper describing their work, but it has not yet been peer-reviewed – they have published it on bioRxiv preprint site.
The stunning disease affecting cats has been known to science for nearly half a century, but became more serious in 2020 when it killed a capybara, a donkey and a tree kangaroo in Germany. Over the years it has been associated with encephalitis in a wide variety of animals.
More recently, the neurological disease primarily affects domestic domestic cats. Symptoms include loss of the ability to retract the nails, tremors, loss of limb control, and seizures. Cats with the disease stagger like drunks, leading to its nickname. The disease progresses over approximately two weeks and there is no known cure – there is also very little treatment for infected animals. It is not known how long it takes to kill cats, as most if not all victims were euthanized for humane reasons.
Initial research on the disease suggested it was caused by the Borna disease virus, but subsequent work failed to confirm this idea. In this new effort, researchers took a more serious look at the disease in an attempt to find its source. They collected the brains of 29 euthanized cats from sites in Germany, Austria and Sweden. Each of the brains was scanned for evidence of Borna virus DNA, but none was found. However, they found rustrela virus in 28 of the brains. The rustrela virus is a relative of the rubella virus that infects humans.
The researchers conclude that their findings strongly suggest that the rustrela virus is the cause of the stunning disease in cats, and note that the virus is commonly seen in wood mice. Furthermore, they suggest that it is also likely to infect an unknown number of other mammals, possibly including humans.
Study reveals human-to-cat transmission of virus that causes COVID-19 More information: Kaspar Matiasek et al, Fatal ‘stunner disease’ mystery solved: New rustrela virus causes severe encephalomyelitis in domestic cats, bioRxiv (2022). DOI: 10.1101/2022.06.01.494454
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