Prevalence and genetic characterization of hepatitis E virus in domestic Bactrian camels in northern China: Identification of a novel HEV8 subtype

Hepatitis E virus（HEV） infection is associated with epidemic and sporadic viral hepatitis worldwide. It is a small, quasi-enveloped, single-stranded positive-sense RNA virus（Emerson and Purcell 2003）. Its genome varies from 6.6 to 7.3 kb in length, containing three open reading frames（ORFs） named ORF1, ORF2, and ORF3. They encode non-structural polyprotein, viral capsid protein, and a small phosphoprotein that is essential for viral release, respectively. As recommended by International Committee on Taxonomy of Viruses（ICTV）,