Pathogens
Genotypic Diversity of Feline Bocavirus Identified in Cats from Italy
Von Irene Mauri, Alessia Facchin, Angelica Stranieri und 3 weiteren.
Inhalt auf Englisch
Abstract
Background
Feline bocavirus (FBoV) is considered one of the emerging viral agents affecting cats.
Methods
this observational study investigated FBoV occurrence by convenience sampling of 224 cats admitted to the Veterinary Teaching Hospital of Lodi, Italy, in 2020–2025 using PCR targeting the NP1 gene. Positive samples were phylogenetically analyzed.
Results
FBoV positivity was observed in 17/224 (7.6%) cats. FBoV genotypes 1 (4%), 2 (0.9%) and 3 (2.7%) were identified. Out of the animals with collection of fecal samples, FBoV-positive cats were 17/53 (32.1%), whereas cats with blood (n. 69), respiratory (n. 54), urine (n. 46), or other (n. 2) samples were FBoV-negative. In a subset of cats with more than one fecal sample collected, viral carriage was detected for up to two weeks. Young age, stray/shelter condition and hospitalization were significantly associated with FBoV positivity (p = 0.0008, p = 0.0139 and p = 0.0023, respectively). In cats with analyzed fecal samples, Feline panleukopenia virus (FPV) positivity was associated with FBoV positivity (p < 0.001), whereas presence of diarrhea was not associated with FBoV occurrence.