The First Detection of Equine Coronavirus in Adult Horses and Foals in Ireland

Nemoto, Manabu; Schofield, Warren; Cullinane, Ann

Many questions remain with regard to the clinical significance of ECoV. The outbreak at a draft-horse racetrack in Japan in 2009 affected 132 of approximately 600 horses and resulted in non-starters and the implementation of movement restrictions [4] . However, draft horses appear to have a higher infection rate than other breeds and an outbreak of similar severity has not been reported in Thoroughbred racehorses [10, 20] . The much higher incidence of ECoV positive Thoroughbred foals identified in Kentucky compared to similar populations internationally suggests an increased susceptibility to ECoV infection in that population. In the past, specific environmental factors were associated with extensive reproductive loss in the Kentucky area and to a lesser extent in other states [21] , but predisposing regional factors such as differences in management, environment or husbandry have not been identified for ECoV. It has been suggested that ECoV is a coinfecting agent in foals with diarrhoea and clinical infections have predominantly been reported in adult horses with a mono-infection with EcoV [10] . There was no indication from the results of this study that coronavirus is a major cause of diarrhoea in Irish horses but the introduction of rRT-PCR as a routine diagnostic test will assist in elucidating the significance of this virus to the Irish breeding, racing and sports industries. The primary focus in future will be on testing adult horses that present with anorexia, lethargy, fever and changes in faecal character as a significant association has been demonstrated between this clinical status and molecular detection of ECoV in faeces [11] .