Expanding the known distribution of phascolartid gammaherpesvirus 1 in koalas to populations across Queensland and New South Wales.

ABSTRACT: Koala populations across the east coast of Australia are under threat of extinction with little known about the presence or distribution of a potential pathogen, phascolartid gammaherpesvirus 1 (PhaHV-1) across these threatened populations. Co-infections with PhaHV-1 and Chlamydia pecorum may be common and there is currently a limited understanding of the impact of these co-infections on koala health. To address these knowledge gaps, archived clinical and field-collected koala samples were examined by quantitative polymerase chain reaction to determine the distribution of PhaHV-1 in previously untested populations across New South Wales and Queensland. We detected PhaHV-1 in all regions surveyed with differences in detection rate between clinical samples from rescued koalas (26%) and field

SUBMITTER: Wright BR 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC10786818 | biostudies-literature | 2024 Jan

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature