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Professor Yuen Kwok-yung, a microbiologist at the University of Hong Kong, also warned that the state of cleanliness in the Chinese city meant that pests were breeding at an alarming rate.
The hepatitis E virus was discovered in a 56-year-old Hong Kong man after systematically presenting abnormal liver function tests after a transplant.
The case is particularly shocking because it was not thought that the disease could pass from rodents to humans.
Professor Yuen Kwok-yung said, "We do not know if, in the future, the rat hepatitis E virus will be in Hong Kong.
"The alleys are now very dirty with a lot of garbage.
"You can see rats that are bigger than cats."
Experts now warn that the discovery is of "major public health importance".
However, the authorities also urged the public not to panic, claiming that there was no evidence of an impending epidemic.
Dr. Siddharth Sridhar, Clinical Assistant Professor in the Department of Microbiology at HKU, said: "This type of unusual infections, rare infections, early cases – even a single case is enough for public health authorities and researchers to be very attentive to the consequences.
"Make sure there is no food for the rats, which means there is no garbage on which the rats can feed themselves." "
The man who had the virus for the first time is now in a stable state.
It is thought that he contracted the disease through food infected with rat excrement.
Local reports indicate that the subdivision where he lived showed signs of infestation by rats.
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