A novel genotype of Hantaan orthohantavirus harbored by Apodemus agrarius chejuensis as a potential etiologic agent of hemorrhagic fever with renal syndrome in Republic of Korea.

Autor: Kyungmin Park, Won-Keun Kim, Seung-Ho Lee, Jongwoo Kim, Jingyeong Lee, Seungchan Cho, Geum-Young Lee, Jin Sun No, Keun Hwa Lee, Jin-Won Song
Jazyk: angličtina
Rok vydání: 2021
Předmět:
Zdroj: PLoS Neglected Tropical Diseases, Vol 15, Iss 5, p e0009400 (2021)
Druh dokumentu: article
ISSN: 1935-2727
1935-2735
DOI: 10.1371/journal.pntd.0009400
Popis: BackgroundOrthohantaviruses, causing hemorrhagic fever with renal syndrome (HFRS) and hantavirus cardiopulmonary syndrome, pose a significant public health threat worldwide. Despite the significant mortality and morbidity, effective antiviral therapeutics for orthohantavirus infections are currently unavailable. This study aimed to investigate the prevalence of HFRS-associated orthohantaviruses and identify the etiological agent of orthohantavirus outbreaks in southern Republic of Korea (ROK).Methodology/principal findingsWe collected small mammals on Jeju Island during 2018-2020. We detected the Hantaan virus (HTNV)-specific antibodies and RNA using an indirect immunofluorescence assay test and reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction on Apodemus agrarius chejuensis (A. chejuensis). The prevalence of anti-HTNV antibodies among rodents was 14.1%. A total of six seropositive mouse harbored HTNV RNA. The amplicon-based next-generation sequencing provided nearly full-length tripartite genomic sequences of six HTNV harbored by A. chejuensis. Phylogenetic and tanglegram analyses were conducted for inferring evolutionary relationships between orthohantaviruses with their reservoir hosts. Phylogenetic analysis showed a novel distinct HTNV genotype. The detected HTNV genomic sequences were phylogenetically related to a viral sequence derived from HFRS patient in southern ROK. Tanglegram analysis demonstrated the segregation of HTNV genotypes corresponding to Apodemus spp. divergence.Conclusions/significanceOur results suggest that A. chejuensis-borne HTNV may be a potential etiological agent of HFRS in southern ROK. Ancestral HTNV may infect A. chejuensis prior to geological isolation between the Korean peninsula and Jeju Island, supporting the co-evolution of orthohantaviruses and rodents. This study arises awareness among physicians for HFRS outbreaks in southern ROK.
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