{"status":"ok","message-type":"work","message-version":"1.0.0","message":{"indexed":{"date-parts":[[2026,4,9]],"date-time":"2026-04-09T05:38:40Z","timestamp":1775713120740,"version":"3.50.1"},"reference-count":50,"publisher":"MDPI AG","issue":"4","license":[{"start":{"date-parts":[[2023,4,2]],"date-time":"2023-04-02T00:00:00Z","timestamp":1680393600000},"content-version":"vor","delay-in-days":0,"URL":"https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by\/4.0\/"}],"funder":[{"DOI":"10.13039\/501100001871","name":"Funda\u00e7\u00e3o para Ci\u00eancia e Tecnologia (FCT)","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","award":["2021.09461.BD"],"award-info":[{"award-number":["2021.09461.BD"]}],"id":[{"id":"10.13039\/501100001871","id-type":"DOI","asserted-by":"publisher"}]}],"content-domain":{"domain":[],"crossmark-restriction":false},"short-container-title":["Pathogens"],"abstract":"<jats:p>Swine are widely recognized as the main reservoir of zoonotic HEV; however, a growing body of data on the HEV prevalence in farmed ruminants of different species also points to a potential route for HEV transmission through ruminants and ruminant products and by-products. Definite information on the zoonotic potential of ruminants is still absent or unclear, compelling the necessity for increasing knowledge on this. The aim of the current study was to analyze the state-of-the-art in this research topic and provide a summary of HEV detection and characterization in farmed ruminants. A total of 1567 papers were retrieved from four search databases that resulted in 35 eligible papers after application of exclusion\/inclusion criteria. Studies on HEV in farmed ruminants were mainly based on the detection of HEV RNA and were reported in Africa (n = 1), America (n = 3), Asia (n = 18) and Europe (n = 13), and focused on a variety of ruminants species, namely cow, goat, sheep, deer, buffalo and yak. The overall pooled prevalence of HEV was 0.02% (0.01\u20130.03, 95% CI). The subgroup pooled prevalence of HEV RNA was 0.01% (0.00\u20130.02, 95% CI) in cow milk, stool, serum, liver, intestinal, bile, blood, spleen and rectal swab samples; 0.09% (0.02\u20130.18, 95% CI) in goat serum, bile, stool, milk, liver, rectal swab and blood samples; 0.01% (0.00\u20130.04, 95% CI) in sheep stool, serum, milk, blood and liver samples. Most of the HEV genotypes found in farmed ruminants belonged to the zoonotic HEV-3 (subtypes 3a, 3c) and HEV-4 (subtype 4d, 4h), with Rocahepevirus also found. The wide HEV circulation observed in different farmed ruminants raises concerns for the possibility of HEV transmission through products from infected ruminants and alerts for the potential zoonotic route for HEV in ruminant products, such as meat and dairy products. Also, contact exposure to infected farmed animals could be a risk factor. Further research should be conducted in order to understand the circulation of HEV in these animals and its zoonotic potential, as there is currently a lack of data on this topic.<\/jats:p>","DOI":"10.3390\/pathogens12040550","type":"journal-article","created":{"date-parts":[[2023,4,3]],"date-time":"2023-04-03T02:32:27Z","timestamp":1680489147000},"page":"550","update-policy":"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.3390\/mdpi_crossmark_policy","source":"Crossref","is-referenced-by-count":8,"title":["A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis on Hepatitis E Virus Detection in Farmed Ruminants"],"prefix":"10.3390","volume":"12","author":[{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0001-9742-5643","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"S\u00e9rgio","family":"Santos-Silva","sequence":"first","affiliation":[{"name":"School of Medicine and Biomedical Sciences (ICBAS), University of Porto, 4050-313 Porto, Portugal"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0001-5740-6675","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Pedro","family":"L\u00f3pez-L\u00f3pez","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Unit of Infectious Diseases, Hospital Universitario Reina Sofia, Clinical Virology and Zoonoses, Instituto Maimonides de Investigaci\u00f3n Biom\u00e9dica de C\u00f3rdoba (IMIBIC), Universidad de C\u00f3rdoba (UCO), 14004 Cordoba, Spain"},{"name":"Center for Biomedical Research Network (CIBER) in Infectious Diseases, Health Institute Carlos III, 28220 Madrid, Spain"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0001-6210-8736","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Helena M. R.","family":"Gon\u00e7alves","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Biosensor NTech\u2014Nanotechnology Services, Lda, Avenida da Liberdade, 249, 1\u00ba Andar, 1250-143 Lisboa, Portugal"},{"name":"Porto School of Engineering, Rede de Qu\u00edmica e Tecnologia\u2014REQUIMTE, 4200-072 Porto, Portugal"}]},{"given":"Ant\u00f3nio","family":"Rivero-Juarez","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Unit of Infectious Diseases, Hospital Universitario Reina Sofia, Clinical Virology and Zoonoses, Instituto Maimonides de Investigaci\u00f3n Biom\u00e9dica de C\u00f3rdoba (IMIBIC), Universidad de C\u00f3rdoba (UCO), 14004 Cordoba, Spain"},{"name":"Center for Biomedical Research Network (CIBER) in Infectious Diseases, Health Institute Carlos III, 28220 Madrid, Spain"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0002-7498-8002","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Wim H. M.","family":"Van der Poel","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Quantitative Veterinary Epidemiology, Wageningen University, 6708 PB Wageningen, The Netherlands"},{"name":"Department Virology & Molecular Biology, Wageningen Bioveterinary Research, 8200 AB Lelystad, The Netherlands"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0002-6157-4978","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Maria S\u00e3o Jos\u00e9","family":"Nascimento","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Faculty of Pharmacy, University of Porto, 4050-313 Porto, Portugal"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0001-8769-8103","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Jo\u00e3o R.","family":"Mesquita","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"School of Medicine and Biomedical Sciences (ICBAS), University of Porto, 4050-313 Porto, Portugal"},{"name":"Epidemiology Research Unit (EPIUnit), Instituto de Sa\u00fade P\u00fablica da Universidade do Porto, 4050-600 Porto, Portugal"},{"name":"Laboratory for Integrative and Translational Research in Population Health (ITR), 4050-600 Porto, Portugal"}]}],"member":"1968","published-online":{"date-parts":[[2023,4,2]]},"reference":[{"key":"ref_1","unstructured":"World Health Organization (2023, January 10). Hepatitis E. WHO. Available online: https:\/\/www.who.int\/news-room\/fact-sheets\/detail\/hepatitis-e."},{"key":"ref_2","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","unstructured":"Wang, B., and Yang, X. (2022). Lou Chirohepevirus from Bats: Insights into Hepatitis E Virus Diversity and Evolution. Viruses, 14.","DOI":"10.3390\/v14050905"},{"key":"ref_3","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"692","DOI":"10.1099\/jgv.0.001435","article-title":"Update: Proposed Reference Sequences for Subtypes of Hepatitis E Virus (Species Orthohepevirus A)","volume":"101","author":"Smith","year":"2020","journal-title":"J. Gen. Virol."},{"key":"ref_4","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"1462","DOI":"10.1111\/liv.14912","article-title":"Hepatitis E: An Update on One Health and Clinical Medicine","volume":"41","author":"Velavan","year":"2021","journal-title":"Liver Int."},{"key":"ref_5","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"1528","DOI":"10.3201\/eid1909.130013","article-title":"Hepatitis E Virus Genotype 4, Nanjing, China, 2001\u20132011","volume":"19","author":"Dai","year":"2013","journal-title":"Emerg. Infect. Dis."},{"key":"ref_6","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","unstructured":"Pallerla, S.R., Harms, D., Johne, R., Todt, D., Steinmann, E., Schemmerer, M., Wenzel, J.J., Hofmann, J., Kuo Shih, J.W., and Wedemeyer, H. (2020). Hepatitis e Virus Infection: Circulation, Molecular Epidemiology, and Impact on Global Health. Pathogens, 9.","DOI":"10.3390\/pathogens9100856"},{"key":"ref_7","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"198106","DOI":"10.1016\/j.virusres.2020.198106","article-title":"Prevalence and Genotype\/Subtype Distribution of Hepatitis E Virus (HEV) among Wild Boars in Japan: Identification of a Genotype 5 HEV Strain","volume":"287","author":"Takahashi","year":"2020","journal-title":"Virus Res."},{"key":"ref_8","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"225","DOI":"10.1007\/s12560-018-9342-8","article-title":"Hiding in Plain Sight? It\u2019s Time to Investigate Other Possible Transmission Routes for Hepatitis E Virus (HEV) in Developed Countries. Food Environ","volume":"10","author":"King","year":"2018","journal-title":"Food Environ. Virol."},{"key":"ref_9","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"55","DOI":"10.1016\/bs.afnr.2018.04.002","article-title":"Hepatitis E Virus: A New Foodborne Zoonotic Concern","volume":"86","author":"Hernandez","year":"2018","journal-title":"Adv. Food Nutr. Res."},{"key":"ref_10","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"127","DOI":"10.1007\/s12560-021-09461-5","article-title":"The Foodborne Transmission of Hepatitis E Virus to Humans","volume":"13","author":"Treagus","year":"2021","journal-title":"Food Environ. Virol."},{"key":"ref_11","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"1120","DOI":"10.1111\/tbed.13157","article-title":"Hepatitis E Virus in Sheep in Italy","volume":"66","author":"Sarchese","year":"2019","journal-title":"Transbound. Emerg. Dis."},{"key":"ref_12","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"481","DOI":"10.1007\/s11250-018-1700-x","article-title":"Short Communication: Detection and Molecular Characterization of Hepatitis E Virus in Domestic Animals of S\u00e3o Tom\u00e9 and Pr\u00edncipe","volume":"51","author":"Mesquita","year":"2019","journal-title":"Trop. Anim. Health Prod."},{"key":"ref_13","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"2182","DOI":"10.3201\/eid2012.131599","article-title":"Hepatitis e Virus Genotype 4 in Yak, Northwestern China","volume":"20","author":"Xu","year":"2014","journal-title":"Emerg. Infect. Dis."},{"key":"ref_14","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"3723650","DOI":"10.1155\/2017\/3723650","article-title":"Detection and Characterization of Hepatitis e Virus in Goats at Slaughterhouse in Tai\u2019an Region, China","volume":"2017","author":"Li","year":"2017","journal-title":"BioMed Res. Int."},{"key":"ref_15","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"43","DOI":"10.5578\/mb.67468","article-title":"Detection of HEV RNA Amounts and Genotypes in Raw Milks Obtained from Different Animals","volume":"53","author":"Demirci","year":"2019","journal-title":"Mikrobiyol. Bul."},{"key":"ref_16","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"69","DOI":"10.1016\/j.virusres.2016.09.008","article-title":"Detection of Hepatitis E Virus (HEV) in Goats","volume":"225","author":"Melegari","year":"2016","journal-title":"Virus Res."},{"key":"ref_17","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"350","DOI":"10.1002\/hep.28668","article-title":"Excretion of Infectious Hepatitis E Virus into Milk in Cows Imposes High Risks of Zoonosis","volume":"64","author":"Huang","year":"2016","journal-title":"Hepatology"},{"key":"ref_18","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"1981","DOI":"10.1002\/jmv.24843","article-title":"High Prevalence of Hepatitis E Virus Infection in Goats","volume":"89","author":"Long","year":"2017","journal-title":"J. Med. Virol."},{"key":"ref_19","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"g7647","DOI":"10.1136\/bmj.g7647","article-title":"Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis Protocols (Prisma-p) 2015: Elaboration and Explanation","volume":"349","author":"Shamseer","year":"2015","journal-title":"BMJ"},{"key":"ref_20","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"310","DOI":"10.1111\/j.1365-2893.2006.00815.x","article-title":"Hepatitis E Virus Infection among Animals in Northern India: An Unlikely Source of Human Disease","volume":"14","author":"Shukla","year":"2007","journal-title":"J. Viral Hepat."},{"key":"ref_21","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"291","DOI":"10.1111\/j.1863-2378.2008.01136.x","article-title":"Hepatitis E Virus Infection among Domestic Animals in Eastern China","volume":"55","author":"Zhang","year":"2008","journal-title":"Zoonoses Public Health"},{"key":"ref_22","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"554","DOI":"10.1016\/j.meegid.2009.02.008","article-title":"Seroepidemiology and Genetic Characterization of Hepatitis E Virus in the Northeast of China","volume":"9","author":"Yu","year":"2009","journal-title":"Infect. Genet. Evol."},{"key":"ref_23","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"277","DOI":"10.1016\/j.jcv.2009.01.008","article-title":"Characterization and Zoonotic Potential of Endemic Hepatitis E Virus (HEV) Strains in Humans and Animals in Hungary","volume":"44","author":"Reuter","year":"2009","journal-title":"J. Clin. Virol."},{"key":"ref_24","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"814","DOI":"10.1128\/JCM.01309-08","article-title":"Epidemiological Screening for Hepatitis E Virus in Bile Specimens from Livestock in Northwest China","volume":"47","author":"Shao","year":"2009","journal-title":"J. Clin. Microbiol."},{"key":"ref_25","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"765","DOI":"10.1089\/vbz.2009.0168","article-title":"Serological Prevalence of Hepatitis E Virus in Domestic Animals and Diversity of Genotype 4 Hepatitis E Virus in China","volume":"10","author":"Geng","year":"2010","journal-title":"Vector Borne Zoonotic Dis."},{"key":"ref_26","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"106","DOI":"10.1016\/j.vetmic.2009.11.004","article-title":"Detection of Hepatitis E Virus in Samples of Animal Origin Collected in Hungary","volume":"143","author":"Nowotny","year":"2010","journal-title":"Vet. Microbiol."},{"key":"ref_27","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"538","DOI":"10.1111\/tbed.12001","article-title":"Serological Evidence for a Hepatitis E Virus-Related Agent in Goats in the United States","volume":"60","author":"Sanford","year":"2013","journal-title":"Transbound. Emerg. Dis."},{"key":"ref_28","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"2791","DOI":"10.1007\/s00705-015-2574-0","article-title":"Swine and Rabbits Are the Main Reservoirs of Hepatitis E Virus in China: Detection of HEV RNA in Feces of Farmed and Wild Animals","volume":"160","author":"Xia","year":"2015","journal-title":"Arch. Virol."},{"key":"ref_29","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"195","DOI":"10.1007\/s12560-015-9193-5","article-title":"Distribution and Molecular Characterization of Hepatitis E Virus in Domestic Animals and Wildlife in Croatia","volume":"7","author":"Keros","year":"2015","journal-title":"Food Environ. Virol."},{"key":"ref_30","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"410","DOI":"10.1007\/s11262-015-1194-9","article-title":"Molecular Detection of Hepatitis E Virus in Sheep from Southern Xinjiang, China","volume":"50","author":"Wu","year":"2015","journal-title":"Virus Genes"},{"key":"ref_31","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"2211","DOI":"10.3201\/eid2212.160641","article-title":"Hepatitis E Virus in Yellow Cattle, Shandong, Eastern China","volume":"22","author":"Yan","year":"2016","journal-title":"Emerg. Infect. Dis."},{"key":"ref_32","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"393","DOI":"10.1002\/hep.28857","article-title":"Reply","volume":"65","author":"Dam","year":"2017","journal-title":"Hepatology"},{"key":"ref_33","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"690","DOI":"10.1111\/zph.12483","article-title":"Evidence of Increased Hepatitis E Virus Exposure in Lao Villagers with Contact to Ruminants","volume":"65","author":"Tritz","year":"2018","journal-title":"Zoonoses Public Health"},{"key":"ref_34","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"54","DOI":"10.1016\/j.ijfoodmicro.2018.05.009","article-title":"Absence of Zoonotic Hepatitis E Virus Infection in Flemish Dairy Cows","volume":"281","author":"Vercouter","year":"2018","journal-title":"Int. J. Food Microbiol."},{"key":"ref_35","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"677","DOI":"10.1002\/jmv.25339","article-title":"Evidence for an Unknown Agent Antigenically Related to the Hepatitis E Virus in Dairy Cows in the United States","volume":"91","author":"Yugo","year":"2019","journal-title":"J. Med. Virol."},{"key":"ref_36","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"5","DOI":"10.1016\/j.ijfoodmicro.2018.11.002","article-title":"Hepatitis E Virus Was Not Detected in Feces and Milk of Cows in Hebei Province of China: No Evidence for HEV Prevalence in Cows","volume":"291","author":"Geng","year":"2019","journal-title":"Int. J. Food Microbiol."},{"key":"ref_37","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"2022","DOI":"10.4014\/jmb.1910.10059","article-title":"Identification of Hepatitis E Virus in Bovine and Porcine Raw Livers","volume":"29","author":"Go","year":"2019","journal-title":"J. Microbiol. Biotechnol."},{"key":"ref_38","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"1122","DOI":"10.1590\/1678-4162-11309","article-title":"Hepatitis E Virus Infection in Buffaloes in South China","volume":"72","author":"Wei","year":"2020","journal-title":"Arq. Bras. Med. Vet. Zootec."},{"key":"ref_39","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"206","DOI":"10.1007\/s10661-020-8172-y","article-title":"Occurrence of Staphylococcus Spp. and Investigation of Fecal and Animal Viral Contaminations in Livestock, River Water, and Sewage from Tunisia and Romania","volume":"192","author":"Rahmani","year":"2020","journal-title":"Environ. Monit. Assess."},{"key":"ref_40","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"108479","DOI":"10.1016\/j.ijfoodmicro.2019.108479","article-title":"Circulation of Hepatitis E Virus (HEV) and\/or HEV-like Agent in Non-Mixed Dairy Farms Could Represent a Potential Source of Infection for Egyptian People","volume":"317","author":"Sayed","year":"2020","journal-title":"Int. J. Food Microbiol."},{"key":"ref_41","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","unstructured":"Palombieri, A., Robetto, S., Di Profio, F., Sarchese, V., Fruci, P., Bona, M.C., Ru, G., Orusa, R., Marsilio, F., and Martella, V. (2020). Surveillance Study of Hepatitis E Virus (HEV) in Domestic and Wild Ruminants in Northwestern Italy. Animals, 10.","DOI":"10.3390\/ani10122351"},{"key":"ref_42","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","unstructured":"Dziedzinska, R., Krzyzankova, M., Bena, M., and Vasickova, P. (2020). Evidence of Hepatitis e Virus in Goat and Sheep Milk. Viruses, 12.","DOI":"10.3390\/v12121429"},{"key":"ref_43","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"108784","DOI":"10.1016\/j.ijfoodmicro.2020.108784","article-title":"Assessment of Hepatitis E Virus (HEV) in the Edible Goat Products Pointed out a Risk for Human Infection in Upper Egypt","volume":"330","author":"Elkhawaga","year":"2020","journal-title":"Int. J. Food Microbiol."},{"key":"ref_44","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"81","DOI":"10.1007\/s12560-019-09407-y","article-title":"No Evidence of Hepatitis E Virus Infection in Farmed Deer in Germany","volume":"12","author":"Trojnar","year":"2020","journal-title":"Food Environ. Virol."},{"key":"ref_45","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"387","DOI":"10.1111\/zph.12935","article-title":"Epidemiological Survey and Risk Factors Associated with Hepatitis E Virus in Small Ruminants in Southern Spain","volume":"69","author":"Risalde","year":"2022","journal-title":"Zoonoses Public Health"},{"key":"ref_46","first-page":"94","article-title":"Determination of Hepatitis e Virus in Sheep and Cattle by Serological and Molecular Methods DNA Sequences Analysis","volume":"48","author":"Tonbak","year":"2022","journal-title":"Acta Vet. Eurasia"},{"key":"ref_47","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"1115","DOI":"10.1007\/s42770-022-00741-1","article-title":"Hepatitis E Virus Genotype 3 in Bovine Livers Slaughtered in the State of Rio Grande Do Sul, Brazil","volume":"53","author":"Bastos","year":"2022","journal-title":"Braz. J. Microbiol."},{"key":"ref_48","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"1441","DOI":"10.1002\/jmv.20717","article-title":"Detection of HEV Antigen as a Novel Marker for the Diagnosis of Hepatitis E","volume":"78","author":"Zhang","year":"2006","journal-title":"J. Med. Virol."},{"key":"ref_49","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"3883","DOI":"10.1128\/JCM.42.8.3883-3885.2004","article-title":"Infection of a Japanese Patient by Genotype 4 Hepatitis E Virus While Traveling in Vietnam","volume":"42","author":"Koizumi","year":"2004","journal-title":"J. Clin. Microbiol."},{"key":"ref_50","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"371","DOI":"10.1016\/S0140-6736(03)14025-1","article-title":"Zoonotic Transmission of Hepatitis E Virus from Deer to Human Beings","volume":"362","author":"Tei","year":"2003","journal-title":"Lancet"}],"container-title":["Pathogens"],"original-title":[],"language":"en","link":[{"URL":"https:\/\/www.mdpi.com\/2076-0817\/12\/4\/550\/pdf","content-type":"unspecified","content-version":"vor","intended-application":"similarity-checking"}],"deposited":{"date-parts":[[2025,10,10]],"date-time":"2025-10-10T19:08:38Z","timestamp":1760123318000},"score":1,"resource":{"primary":{"URL":"https:\/\/www.mdpi.com\/2076-0817\/12\/4\/550"}},"subtitle":[],"short-title":[],"issued":{"date-parts":[[2023,4,2]]},"references-count":50,"journal-issue":{"issue":"4","published-online":{"date-parts":[[2023,4]]}},"alternative-id":["pathogens12040550"],"URL":"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.3390\/pathogens12040550","relation":{},"ISSN":["2076-0817"],"issn-type":[{"value":"2076-0817","type":"electronic"}],"subject":[],"published":{"date-parts":[[2023,4,2]]}}}