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Abstract Background Pseudorabies virus (PRV) causes Aujeszky’s disease in pigs and can be transmitted to other mammals, including humans. In the current study, we systematically studied the interspecies transmission and evolutionary history of PRV. Methods We performed comprehensive analysis on the phylodynamics, selection, and structural biology to summarize the phylogenetic and adaptive evolution of PRV based on all available full-length and major glycoprotein sequences. Results PRV can be divided into 2 main clades with frequent interclade and intraclade recombination. Clade 2.2 (variant PRV) is currently the most prevalent genotype worldwide, and most commonly involved in cross-species transmission events (including humans). We also found that the population size of clade 2.2 has increased since 2011, and the effective reproduction number was >1 from 2011 to 2016, indicating that PRV may be still circulating in swine herds and is still a risk in relation with cross-species transmission in China. Of note, we identified amino acid sites in some important glycoproteins gB, gC, gD, and gE that may be associated with PRV adaptation to new hosts and immune escape to vaccines. Conclusions Our study provides important genetic insight into the interspecies transmission and evolution of PRV within and between different hosts that warrant additional surveillance. Pseudorabies virus (PRV) causes Aujeszky disease in animals, including humans. The interspecies transmission mechanism and evolutionary dynamics of PRV are currently poorly understood. Our study provides needed knowledge to understand the precise risk of PRV transmission to humans and animals.

Pseudorabies virus (PRV) is a herpes virus, also known as Aujeszky’s disease virus (ADV), which can cause a highly infectious disease pseudorabies (PR) in a variety of mammals. In the past, it has been debated whether PRV can infect humans, but more and more cases of PRV infection have been reported since 2017. The illness has claimed many victims and left survivors with serious sequelae. This indicates that humans may ignore the zoonotic ability of PRV. This review aims to summarize the pathology and pathogenesis of PRV and speculate on how it infects humans. This paper provides a comprehensive overview of the progression of PRV, including its virology characteristics, genomic organization, and genetic evolution. It also synthesises the existing literature on PRV infection in humans, and analyses the factors contributing to PRV zoonosis. Finally, the pathogenesis of PRV-infected pigs and other mammals was summarized, and the pathogenesis of PRV-infected humans was speculated.

Suid herpesvirus 1 (SuHV1, syn. Aujeszky’s disease virus [ADV] or pseudorabies virus [PrV]), which belongs to the family Herpesviridae , subfamily Alphaherpesvirinae , genus Varicellovirus is the causative agent of Aujeszky’s disease (AD, pseudorabies), a notifiable disease, that causes substantial economic losses to the swine industry in countries, where AD is present. Members of the family Suidae (true pigs) are the only natural hosts for PrV, although the virus can infect numerous other mammals including ruminants, carnivores and rodents. Despite the tremendous progress that has been made in controlling and eliminating PrV in domestic pigs, there is mounting evidence that PrV infections are more widespread in wild swine across the world than originally thought. Unfortunately, our understanding of the extent of PrV infections in these wild populations and of the threat to domestic swine is still fragmentary. This review aims at giving a global perspective on PrV infections in wild swine by scrutinizing the current state of knowledge concerning (i) the global occurrence of PrV infections in free-living populations of wild swine, e.g., wild boar and feral swine, (ii) the molecular characterization of wild swine PrV, (iii) infection characteristics of PrV in populations of wild swine, (iv) the risk of spillover infections to domestic pigs, (v) potential risk-mitigating measures, focusing on further research needs.

The continuous circulation of pseudorabies virus (PRV) variants persists in causing substantial economic losses within China’s swine industry. Nevertheless, the molecular characteristics and pathogenic potential of the recently emerged variants remain poorly understood, and the cross‐protective effectiveness of the newly developed vaccines based on these variants against the circulating strains is still uncertain. In this study, two novel PRV strains, designated WK631 and WK1157, were isolated from clinical samples collected in 2022 and 2024 during investigations of suspected pseudorabies outbreaks. Comparative genomic analysis indicated that both strains share high sequence homology with previously reported PRV variants and harbor sporadic amino acid mutations. Moreover, a small‐fragment recombination event was detected in WK631. Pan‐genomic alignment has identified genotype‐specific molecular signatures: 33 proteins for genotype I, 5 for classical genotype II, and 10 for variant genotype II strains. Subsequently, 14 days after immunization with the PRV variant vaccine, the animals were challenged with WK631, WK1157, or the highly virulent control strain HeN1. Unvaccinated mice exhibited characteristic PRV‐induced pruritus and succumbed to infection with 100% mortality within 6 days postchallenge. High viral loads were detected in brain tissues by quantitative PCR and immunohistochemistry, accompanied by typical neuropathological lesions. In contrast, all vaccinated mice survived without exhibiting any clinical symptoms, viral replication, or pathological alterations. This study not only broadens our understanding of the genomic characteristics of PRV variants but also confirms the pathogenic potential of recent isolates and validates the effectiveness of variant‐based vaccines, thereby reinforcing their potential use in PRV control strategies.

To synthesize current knowledge on pseudorabies virus (PRV; also known as Aujeszky’s disease virus or Suid alphaherpesvirus 1 ) infections in wild swine, a combined review and meta-analysis was conducted. The study aimed to critically interpret reported PRV seroprevalence data, assess risks for animal health and disease control programs, and inform future monitoring and management strategies. An extensive literature search covering the period from 1970 to 2025 identified 160 serosurveys published between 1979 and 2024, yielding 516 datasets for analysis. Binomial logistic and mixed-effects logistic regression models were used to assess spatio-temporal patterns. The results indicate that PRV is widely established in wild swine populations, particularly in Europe and North America, forming stable endemic cycles largely independent of host density. Persistent spatial heterogeneity and region-specific temporal trends were observed, and once introduced into naïve populations, PRV appears to persist long term, limiting the added value of continued monitoring in long-established endemic areas.

In recent years, the prevalence of pseudorabies virus (PRV) has caused huge economic losses to the Chinese pig industry. Meanwhile, PRV infection in humans also sounded the alarm about its cross-species transmission from pigs to humans. To study the regional PRV epidemic, serological and epidemiological investigations of PRV in pig populations from Yunnan Province during 2017–2021 were performed. The results showed that 31.37% (6324/20,158, 95% CI 30.73–32.01) of serum samples were positive for PRV glycoprotein E (gE)-specific antibodies via enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA). The risk factors, including the breeding scale and development stage, were significantly associated with PRV seroprevalence among pigs in Yunnan Province. Of the 416 tissue samples collected from PRV-suspected pigs in Yunnan Province, 43 (10.33%, 95% CI 7.41–13.26) samples were positive for PRV-gE nucleic acid in which 15 novel PRV strains from these PRV-positive samples were isolated, whose gC and gE sequences were analyzed. Phylogenetic analysis showed that all 15 isolates obtained in this study belonged to the genotype II. Additionally, the gC gene of one isolate (YuN-YL-2017) was genetically closer to variant PRV strains compared with others, while the gE gene was in the same clade with other classical PRV strains, indicating that this isolate might be a recombinant strain generated from the classical and variant strains. The results revealed the severe PRV epidemic in Yunnan Province and indicated that PRV variants are the major genotypes threatening the pig industry development.

Background Pseudorabies virus (PRV) is one of the most important swine pathogens, causing annual global economic losses of billions of dollars to the pig industry. Due to PRV’s high resistance, persistent latency, and complex transmission dynamics, once infection is established in pig farms, substantial difficulties in eradication are presented. Therefore, it is important to understand the prevalence, spatial distribution and temporal trends of PRV in swine herds. Method We performed a systematic review and meta-analysis to evaluate the epidemiological characteristics of PRV in the swine herds across China. A total of 70 eligible studies were systematically retrieved from five comprehensive databases. Results The results revealed an overall pooled prevalence of PRV in China at 21.5% during the period from 2010 to 2024. There was a higher prevalence rate of 26.1% between 2010 and 2016 compared to subsequent years. Moreover, the prevalence of PRV in Inner Mongolia was 47.4%, exceeding other provinces. Additionally, serological assays yielded the highest detection rate at 29.1%. Furthermore, sows exhibited a higher susceptibility to PRV infection than boars. The results did not reveal significant variations in PRV infection rates based on gender or age. Conclusion Our nationwide surveillance revealed persistent PRV circulation in China, with particularly high prevalence in certain regions. This necessitates targeted and differentiated control strategies prioritizing high-endemic areas, where intensified measures could maximize containment efficacy while optimizing resource allocation.

Background Pseudorabies is an infection of domestic and wild pigs that has occasionally been reported in dogs with fatal encephalitis. Hunting dogs are predisposed to pseudorabies exposure due to incorrect practices (administration of raw infected meat) or close contact with infected wild boars. This study described an outbreak of pseudorabies in two hunting dogs in the Campania region, southern Italy. Case presentation Two hunting dogs were hospitalized after a hunting trip, with fever, itching, and self-inflicted lesions. Laboratory tests showed mild anemia and marked leukocytosis. Despite conservative therapy, both animals died 48 h after the presentation of symptoms. One of the carcasses was sent to the Department of Veterinary Medicine and Animal Production in Naples to confirm the suspicion of pseudorabies. DNA was extracted from different matrices and used as a template for real-time PCR to detect PRV. Several samples (brain, cerebellum, brainstem, lung, and liver) tested positive. Subsequent sequence analyses of glycoprotein E from DNA extracted from the brain stem revealed a sequence similarity to those described in previous cases of pseudorabies in dogs in Italy, France and Belgium. One month after the outbreak, blood samples were collected from 42 dogs belonging to the same hunting team and from 245 dogs (cohort population) living in the Campania region. All samples were tested with two commercial ELISAs to detect seroconversion against glycoproteins B and E. A seroprevalence of 19% was observed in the hunting team affected by the outbreak, while only 0.8% was observed in the regional dog population. Conclusions The data reported in this study demonstrate potential exposure to PRV by dead-end hosts, particularly hunting dogs. The sequencing results indicated the homogeneity of PRV strains circulating in the different Italian regions.

Pseudorabies virus (PRV) variants were discovered in immunized pigs in Northern China and have become the dominant strains since 2011, which caused huge economic losses. In this study, a classical PRV strain was successfully isolated in a PRV gE positive swine farm. The complete genome sequence was obtained using a high-throughput sequencing method and the virus was named JS-2020. The nucleotide homology analysis and phylogenetic tree based on complete genome sequences or gC gene showed that the JS-2020 strain was relatively close to the classical Ea strain in genotype II clade. However, a large number of amino acid variations occurred in the JS-2020 strain compared with the Ea strain, including multiple immunogenic and virulence-related genes. In particular, the gE protein of JS-2020 was similar to earlier Chinese PRV strains without Aspartate insertion. However, the amino acid variations analysis based on major immunogenic and virulence-related genes showed that the JS-2020 strain was not only homologous with earlier PRV strains, but also with strains isolated in recent years. Moreover, the JS-2020 strain was identified as a recombinant between the GXGG-2016 and HLJ-2013 strains. The pathogenicity analysis proved that the PRV JS-2020 strain has typical neurogenic infections and a strong pathogenicity in mice. Together, a novel recombinant classical strain was isolated and characterized in the context of the PRV variant pandemic in China. This study provided some valuable information for the study of the evolution of PRV in China.

Background Pseudorabies virus (PRV), porcine parvovirus (PPV) and porcine circovirus 3 (PCV3) are common in swine farms in China. Single infection or co-infection with PRV, PPV and/or PCV3 was difficult to distinguish between their clinical symptoms and pathological changes. Therefore, a quick and accurate detection method is needed for epidemiological surveillance, disease management, import and export control. Methods In the present study, we established a multiplex real-time PCR assay based on SYBR Green I for the simultaneous detection of PRV, PPV and PCV3 genomes. Results PRV, PPV and PCV3 were distinguished in the same sample by their different melting temperatures (Tm), with melting peaks at 90 °C for PRV, 84 °C for PPV and 80 °C for PCV3, respectively, and other non-targeted swine pathogens did not exhibit specific melting peaks. The assay showed a high degree of linearity (R 2 ≧0.995), and the detection limits were 4.76 copies/μL for PRV, 3.67 copies/μL for PPV, 3.07 copies/μL for PCV3 and 1.87 × 10 2 copies/μL for the three mixed plasmids, respectively. In this research, 81 clinical samples from pig farms in nine different regions of Guangdong Province were used to evaluate this new method. The detection rate of the multiplex real-time PCR assay was higher than that of the conventional PCR assay. Conclusions This multiplex real-time PCR assay could be used as a diagnostic tool that is rapid, sensitive and reliable for the detection of co-infection of PRV, PPV and PCV3 as well as for molecular epidemiological surveillance.