关键词： ISOLATION of viruses   GUANO   METAGENOMICS   INSECT viruses   DOUBLE-stranded RNA   RNA viruses   CELLULAR pathology   BATS  

摘要： Previous metagenomic analysis indicated that numerous insect viruses exist in bat guano. In this study, we isolated a novel double-stranded RNA virus, a tentative member of the family Totiviridae, designated Tianjin totivirus (ToV-TJ), from bat feces. The virus is an icosahedral particle with a diameter of 40-43 nm, and it causes cytopathic effect in Sf9, Hz, and C6/36 cell lines. Full-length genomic sequence analysis showed that ToV-TJ shares high similarity with the totivirus OMRV-AK4, which was recently isolated from mosquitoes in Japan. The full-length genome of the ToV-TJ was 7611 bp and contained two predicted non-overlapping open reading frames (ORFs): ORF1, encoding the capsid protein (CP), and ORF2, encoding an RNA-dependent RNA polymerase. Bioassay of ToV-TJ by feeding on the larvae of Spodoptera exigua and Helicoverpa armigera (Hubner) suggests that this virus is not infectious for these two larvae in vivo. Sequences similar to that of ToV-TJ have been detected in bat feces sampled in Yunnan and Hainan Provinces, suggesting that this virus is widely distributed.

关键词： ARENAVIRUSES   VIRUS diseases   ARTIBEUS jamaicensis   RESERVOIRS   ISOLATION of viruses   ARTIBEUS   RABIES virus  

摘要： Tacaribe virus (TCRV) was first isolated from 11 Artibeus species bats captured in Trinidad in the 1950s during a rabies virus surveillance program. Despite significant effort, no evidence of infection of other mammals, mostly rodents, was found, suggesting that no other vertebrates harbored TCRV. For this reason, it was hypothesized that TCRV was naturally hosted by artibeus bats. This is in stark contrast to other arenaviruses with known hosts, all of which are rodents. To examine this hypothesis, we conducted experimental infections of Jamaican fruit bats (Artibeus jamaicensis) to determine whether they could be persistently infected without substantial pathology. We subcutaneously or intranasally infected bats with TCRV strain TRVL-11573, the only remaining strain of TCRV, and found that low-dose (10(4) 50% tissue culture infective dose [TCID50]) inoculations resulted in asymptomatic and apathogenic infection and virus clearance, while high-dose (10(6) TCID50) inoculations caused substantial morbidity and mortality as early as 10 days postinfection. Uninoculated cage mates failed to seroconvert, and viral RNA was not detected in their tissues, suggesting that transmission did not occur. Together, these data suggest that A. jamaicensis bats may not be a reservoir host for TCRV.

关键词： Bats   Rabies   Rabies virus   Argentina   Nucleoproteins   Antigenic variation   Dogs   Phylogenetic analysis  

摘要： Background: Rabies is a fatal infection of the central nervous system primarily transmitted by rabid animal bites. Rabies virus (RABV) circulates through two different epidemiological cycles: terrestrial and aerial, where dogs, foxes or skunks and bats, respectively, act as the most relevant reservoirs and/or vectors. It is widely accepted that insectivorous bats are not important vectors of RABV in Argentina despite the great diversity of bat species and the extensive Argentinean territory. Methods: We studied the positivity rate of RABV detection in different areas of the country, and the antigenic and genetic diversity of 99 rabies virus (RABV) strains obtained from 14 species of insectivorous bats collected in Argentina between 1991 and 2008. Results: Based on the analysis of bats received for RABV analysis by the National Rabies system of surveillance, the positivity rate of RABV in insectivorous bats ranged from 3.1 to 5.4%, depending on the geographic location. The findings were distributed among an extensive area of the Argentinean territory. The 99 strains of insectivorous bat-related sequences were divided into six distinct lineages associated with Tadarida brasiliensis, Myotis spp, Eptesicus spp, Histiotus montanus, Lasiurus blosseviilli and Lasiurus cinereus. Comparison with RABV sequences obtained from insectivorous bats of the Americas revealed co-circulation of similar genetic variants in several countries. Finally, inter-species transmission, mostly related with Lasiurus species, was demonstrated in 11.8% of the samples. Conclusions: This study demonstrates the presence of several independent enzootics of rabies in insectivorous bats of Argentina. This information is relevant to identify potential areas at risk for human and animal infection.

关键词： Bats   Rabies virus   Distribution   Epidemiology   RT-PCR  

摘要： Bats are main reservoirs for Lyssavirus worldwide, which is an important public health issue because it constitutes one of the big challenges in rabies control. Yet, little is known about how the virus is maintained among bats, and the epidemiological relationships remain poorly understood. The aim of the present study was to investigate the distribution of the rabies virus (RABV) in bat tissues and organs and to genetically characterize virus isolates from naturally infected non-hematophagous bats. The heminested reverse transcriptase polymerase chain reaction (hnRT-PCR) and sequencing using primers to the nucleoprotein coding gene were performed. The results showed a dissemination of the RABV in different tissues and organs, particularly in the salivary glands, tongue, lungs, kidneys, bladder, intestine and feces, suggesting other possible forms of RABV elimination and the possibility of transmission among these animals. The phylogenetic analysis confirmed that different variants of RABV are maintained by non-hematophagous bats in nature and have similar tissue distribution irrespective of bat species and phylogenetic characterization. (C) 2012 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

关键词： 白纹伊蚊   致倦库蚊   蝙蝠   乙型脑炎病毒   感染  

摘要： 目的了解蝙蝠乙脑病毒分离株GD1和HN2株对白纹伊蚊和致倦库蚊的易感性。方法通过病毒液饲喂法使白纹伊蚊和致倦库蚊经口感染蝙蝠乙脑病毒GD1株和HN2株,采用TaqMan real-time RT-PCR方法,检测GD1株和HN2株感染白纹伊蚊及致倦库蚊后第4、6、8、10、12、14、16、18、20天病毒存在情况与病毒载量的动态变化。结果两株蝙蝠乙脑病毒在感染白纹伊蚊、致倦库蚊后4~20 d内均能被检测到。Ct值的动态变化规律显示白纹伊蚊和致倦库蚊均能感染乙脑病毒GD1株和HN2株,但致倦库蚊的易感性高于白纹伊蚊;两株毒株的毒力可能不同,HN2株毒力大于GD1株。结论白纹伊蚊和致倦库蚊均能感染蝙蝠乙脑病毒分离株。

关键词： BATS as carriers of disease   FECAL microbiology   VETERINARY virology   NUCLEOTIDE sequence   EUKARYOTIC cells   VIRAL proteins   VIRAL transmission  

摘要： Increasing data indicate that bats harbor diverse viruses, some of which cause severe human diseases. In this study, sequence-independent amplification and high-throughput sequencing (Solexa) were applied to the metagenomic analysis of viruses in bat fecal samples collected from 6 locations in China. A total of 8,746,417 reads with a length of 306,124,595 bp were obtained. Among these reads, 13,541 (0.15%) had similarity to phage sequences and 9,170 (0.1%) had similarity to eukaryotic virus sequences. A total of 129 assembled contigs (>100 nucleotides) were constructed and compared with GenBank: 32 contigs were related to phages, and 97 were related to eukaryotic viruses. The most frequent reads and contigs related to eukaryotic viruses were homologous to densoviruses, dicistroviruses, coronaviruses, parvoviruses, and tobamoviruses, a range that includes viruses from invertebrates, vertebrates, and plants. Most of the contigs had low identities to known viral genomic or protein sequences, suggesting that a large number of novel and genetically diverse insect viruses as well as putative mammalian viruses are transmitted by bats in China. This study provides the first preliminary understanding of the virome of some bat populations in China, which may guide the discovery and isolation of novel viruses in the future.

关键词： evolution   host range   orthomyxoviridae   Chiroptera   Central America  

摘要： Influenza A virus reservoirs in animals have provided novel genetic elements leading to the emergence of global pandemics in humans. Most influenza A viruses circulate in waterfowl, but those that infect mammalian hosts are thought to pose the greatest risk for zoonotic spread to humans and the generation of pandemic or panzootic viruses. We have identified an influenza A virus from little yellow-shouldered bats captured at two locations in Guatemala. It is significantly divergent from known influenza A viruses. The HA of the bat virus was estimated to have diverged at roughly the same time as the known subtypes of HA and was designated as H17. The neuraminidase (NA) gene is highly divergent from all known influenza NAs, and the internal genes from the bat virus diverged from those of known influenza A viruses before the estimated divergence of the known influenza A internal gene lineages. Attempts to propagate this virus in cell cultures and chicken embryos were unsuccessful, suggesting distinct requirements compared with known influenza viruses. Despite its divergence from known influenza A viruses, the bat virus is compatible for genetic exchange with human influenza viruses in human cells, suggesting the potential capability for reassortment and contributions to new pandemic or panzootic influenza A viruses.

关键词： ARTIBEUS   INFLUENZA viruses  

摘要： The article reports on a report claiming the capability of Fruit bats in carrying influenza virus.

关键词： VETERINARY epidemiology   BAT diseases   NIPAH virus   SERUM   IMMUNOGLOBULIN G   ENZYME-linked immunosorbent assay   NUCLEOCAPSIDS   WESTERN immunoblotting  

摘要： The article discusses a study which examined the prevalence of Nipah virus (NiV) and Hendra virus in bats in Vietnam during the 2007-08 period. Serum samples collected from various species of live bats were subjected to immunoglobulin G enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA). Recombinant N protein was vaccinated to two Leschenault's roussette bats to obtain positive serum specimens containing antibodies against the nucleocapsid protein of NiV (NiV-N). Results of the study showed that 20 of the 22 specimens tested positive by Western blot analysis. The study observed different patterns of reactivity of bat antibody against the NiV protein.