First Evidence of Antibodies Against Lloviu Virus in Schreiber’s Bent-Winged Insectivorous Bats Demonstrate a Wide Circulation of the Virus in Spain

• DOI: 10.3390/v11040360
• Publication Date: 2019-04-22T07:15:53Z
• Authors: Eva Ramírez de Ar...; Mariano Sanchez-L...; Maria J. Perteguer; Maggie Bartlett; Marta Ortiz; Pamela Campioli; Ana Hernández; Jeanette Gonzalez; Karla Garcia; Manolo Ramos; Miguel Ángel Jimé...; Antonio Tenorio; Mª Paz Sánchez-Seco; Félix González; Juan Emilio Echev...; Gustavo Palacios; Anabel Negredo
• Keywords: Insectivore

Although Lloviu virus (LLOV) was discovered in the carcasses of insectivorous Schreiber’s Bent-winged bats caves Northern Spain 2002, its infectivity and pathogenicity remain unclear. We examined seroprevalence LLOV potentially exposed (n = 60), common serotine 10) as controls, humans 22) using an immunoblot assay. found antibodies against GP2 all serum pools, but not any human pools tested. To confirm this seroreactivity, 52 serums were individually tested Domain Programmable Arrays (DPA), a phage display based-system serology technique for profiling filovirus epitopes. A serological signature different proteins obtained 19/52 samples (36.5%). The immunodominant response majority specific to LLOV-unique epitopes, confirming that detected LLOV. our knowledge, is first evidence exposure live captured bats, dissociating circulation cause previously reported die-offs.