Seroprevalence of Japanese encephalitis virus in pig populations of Tamil Nadu, India: Exploring the tropical endemic link of virus

Japanese encephalitis virus (JEV) is a major cause of encephalitis in Southeast Asia. Tamil Nadu, a state located in the southern part of India, contributes substantially to the national burden of human JE cases every year. However, limited information is available on the epidemiology of JE in pig populations of Tamil Nadu. A cross-sectional study was conducted to assess JEV prevalence in pig populations of Tamil Nadu. A total of 710 pigs reared in 118 farms across 10 districts of Tamil Nadu were sampled using multistage cluster random sampling. Serum samples were analyzed for their JEV status using Immunoglobulin M (IgM) and Immunoglobulin G (IgG) Enzyme-Linked Immunosorbent Assay (ELISA). At the animal-level, the apparent JEV seroprevalence was 60.4% (95% CI: 56.8% – 64.0%) and the true seroprevalence was 50.1% (95% CI: 47.0% – 53.2%). The herd-level apparent seroprevalence was 94.1% (95% CI: 88.1% – 97.5%) and the true seroprevalence was 93.3% (95% CI: 89.5% – 96.2%). The intensity of JEV circulation was high in all the districts, with seroprevalence ranging between 43% and 100%. Pigs across all age categories were seropositive and a high overall seroprevalence of 95.2% (95% CI: 76.2% – 99.9%) was recorded in pigs older than 12 months. JEV seropositivity was recorded in all the seasons but the prevalence peaked in the monsoon (67.9%, 95% CI: 61.1% – 74.2%) followed by winter (65.1%, 95%CI: 57.4% – 72.2%) and summer (53.3%, 95% CI: 47.8% – 58.8%) seasons. The results indicate that JEV is endemic in pigs populations of the state and a one health approach is essential with collaborative actions from animal and public health authorities to control JE in Tamil Nadu, India.