Molecular screening of selected RNA viruses in neotropical wild felids of Brazil

Astrovirus, cardiovirus and rotavirus are RNA viruses widely distributed among humans, domestic and wild mammals, including felids, occasionally associated with fatal outbreaks and highly resistant to environmental conditions. Despite this, there are no reports of these viruses in New World felids. The aim of this study was to investigate the presence of astrovirus, rotavirus and cardiovirus in non-domestic felids under human care or in the wild, across multiple Brazilian biomes (i.e., Amazon Forest, Atlantic Forest, Caatinga, and Cerrado). Biological samples (e.g., blood, oral and rectal swabs, and frozen tissues) were submitted to reverse transcriptase polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) for astrovirus detection and real-time RT-PCR for rotavirus and cardiovirus, followed by sequencing. Fifty wild felids were analyzed, comprising 40 free-ranging and 10 captive animals: 19 ocelots (Leopardus pardalis), 12 pumas (Puma concolor), seven jaguarundis (Herpailurus yagouaroundi), six southern tiger cats (Leopardus guttulus), three margays (Leopardus wiedii) and three jaguars (Panthera onca). An astrovirus was detected in rectal swab of a healthy captive southern tiger cat, while a genotype G3P[3] Rotavirus alphagastroenteritidis (Rotavirus A) was detected in intestine of a roadkill puma. All felid samples were negative for cardiovirus. Morphological analyses of available formalin-fixed tissues of the rotavirus-positive puma were inconclusive due to autolysis. To the authors' knowledge, this is the first molecular detection of astrovirus and rotavirus in Neotropical wild felid species.