Project description:We discovered a novel paramyxovirus, Tailam virus, of subfamily Paramyxovirinae, in the kidneys and spleens of Sikkim rats. The coding potential of its genome (3'-N-P/V/C-M-F-SH-TM-G-L-5') is similar to those of Beilong virus and J virus, with putative proteins having 59.1 to 94.4% and 23.8 to 80.1% amino acid identities to those of Beilong virus and J virus, respectively.
Project description:In 2012, an unprecedented large-scale outbreak of disease in pigs in China caused great economic losses to the swine industry. Isolates from pseudorabies virus epidemics in swine herds were characterized. Evidence confirmed that the pathogenic pseudorabies virus was the etiologic agent of this epidemic.
Project description:In 2012, a female wildlife biologist experienced fever, malaise, headache, generalized myalgia and arthralgia, neck stiffness, and a sore throat shortly after returning to the United States from a 6-week field expedition to South Sudan and Uganda. She was hospitalized, after which a maculopapular rash developed and became confluent. When the patient was discharged from the hospital on day 14, arthralgia and myalgia had improved, oropharynx ulcerations had healed, the rash had resolved without desquamation, and blood counts and hepatic enzyme levels were returning to reference levels. After several known suspect pathogens were ruled out as the cause of her illness, deep sequencing and metagenomics analysis revealed a novel paramyxovirus related to rubula-like viruses isolated from fruit bats.
Project description:The viral genus Henipavirus includes two highly virulent zoonotic viruses of serious public health concern. Hendra henipavirus and Nipah henipavirus outbreaks are restricted to Australia and Southeast Asia, respectively. The Henipavirus genus comprises mostly bat-borne viruses, but exceptions have already been described as novel viruses with rodents and shrews as reservoir animals. In the Americas, scarce evidence supports the circulation of these viruses. In this communication, we report a novel henipa-like virus from opossums (Marmosa demerarae) from a forest fragment area in the Peixe-Boi municipality, Brazil, after which the virus was named the Peixe-Boi virus (PBV). The application of next-generation sequencing and metagenomic approach led us to discover the original evidence of a henipa-like virus genome in Brazil and South America and the original description of a henipa-like virus in marsupial species. These findings emphasize the importance of further studies to characterize PBV and clarify its ecology, impact on public health, and its relationship with didelphid marsupials and henipaviruses.
Project description:In public databases, we identified sequences reported as human genes expressed in kidney mesangial cells. The similarity of these genes to paramyxovirus matrix, fusion, and phosphoprotein genes suggests that they are derived from a novel paramyxovirus. These genes are sufficiently unique to suggest the existence of a novel paramyxovirus genus.
Project description:Common or European hedgehogs can be found throughout Western Europe. They are known carriers of a variety of parasitic and bacterial pathogens, and have also been shown to carry several viruses, including morbilli-like paramyxoviruses, although the pathogenic and zoonotic potential of some of these viruses has yet to be determined. We report here the discovery of a novel paramyxovirus in Belgian hedgehogs, named Belerina virus. The virus was detected by nanopore sequencing of RNA isolated from hedgehog tissue. Out of 147 animals screened in this study, 57 tested positive for Belerina virus (39%), indicating a high prevalence of this virus in the Belgian hedgehog population. Based on its divergence from other known paramyxovirus species, Belerina virus is thought to represent a new species in the family Paramyxoviridae. Phylogenetic analysis groups Belerina virus together with the bat-borne Shaan virus within the genus Jeilongvirus, although expanding the tree with partial genomes shows Belerina virus forming a separate subclade within this genus, alongside a yet-unnamed paramyxovirus isolated from a greater tube-nosed bat. In summary, we discuss the complete genome sequence of Belerina virus, a putative new paramyxovirus species commonly found in Belgian hedgehogs.
Project description:Orf virus, which belongs to the Parapoxvirus genus, induces a zoonotic infectious disease characterized by acute, highly vascularized cutaneous pustular lesions in sheep and goats. A number of Orf outbreaks have been reported in sheep and goats in recent years, but no reports have described an Orf virus strain from humans in China. In this study, we diagnosed Orf virus infection in two people, a mother and son, in the Gansu province of China. The human Orf virus was isolated and its phylogenetic characterization was analyzed based on a complete B2L gene. The results are useful for developing prospective programs to control Orf virus infections in both goats and humans.
Project description:The widely used pseudorabies virus (PRV) Bartha-K61 vaccine has played a key role in the eradication of PRV. Since late 2011, however, a disease characterized by neurologic symptoms and a high number of deaths among newborn piglets has occurred among Bartha-K61-vaccinated pigs on many farms in China. Clinical samples from pigs on 15 farms in 6 provinces were examined. The PRV gE gene was detectable by PCR in all samples, and sequence analysis of the gE gene showed that all isolates belonged to a relatively independent cluster and contained 2 amino acid insertions. A PRV (named HeN1) was isolated and caused transitional fever in pigs. In protection assays, Bartha-K61 vaccine provided 100% protection against lethal challenge with SC (a classical PRV) but only 50% protection against 4 challenges with strain HeN1. The findings suggest that Bartha-K61 vaccine does not provide effective protection against PRV HeN1 infection.
Project description:Henipaviruses are zoonotic viruses, including some highly pathogenic and capable of serious disease and high fatality rates in both animals and humans. Hendra virus and Nipah virus are the most notable henipaviruses, resulting in significant outbreaks across South Asia, South-East Asia, and Australia. Pteropid fruit bats have been identified as key zoonotic reservoirs; however, the increased discovery of henipaviruses outside the geographic distribution of Pteropid fruit bats and the detection of novel henipa-like viruses in other species such as the shrew, rat, and opossum suggest that Pteropid bats are not the sole reservoir for henipaviruses. In this review, we provide an update on henipavirus spillover events and describe the recent detection of novel unclassified henipaviruses, with a strong focus on the shrew and its emerging role as a key host of henipaviruses.