Development and application of a recombinant M protein-based indirect ELISA for the detection of porcine deltacoronavirus IgG antibodies

Porcine deltacoronavirus (PDCoV) is a recently identified coronavirus in the genus Deltacoronavirus that can cause enteric disease including diarrhea, vomiting, dehydration and mortality in neonatal piglets. Serological assays to detect anti-PDCoV antibodies are presently limited to certain laboratories and geographic regions. In this study, a recombinant M protein-based indirect enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (PDCoV-rM ELISA) was developed and utilized to determine the prevalence of anti-PDCoV IgG in Hebei province. The PDCoV-rM ELISA showed no cross-reaction with antisera against transmissible gastroenteritis virus (TGEV), porcine epidemic diarrhea virus (PEDV), porcine rotavirus (PRV), porcine circovirus 2 (PCV2), classical swine fever virus (CSFV) or porcine reproductive and respiratory syndrome virus (PRRSV). The diagnostic sensitivity was 90.6% and the diagnostic specificity was 93.3%. A total of 871 serum samples collected in Hebei from January 2015 to October 2016 were checked for presence of antibodies against PDCoV using the novel PDCoV-rM ELISA. Anti-PDCoV IgG antibodies were detected in 11% (96/871) of the samples and in 25% (10/40) of the investigated farms. The data suggest that PDCoV has a low seroprevalence in pig population in Hebei province, China.