Molecular epidemiological studies on foot-and-mouth disease type O Taiwan viruses from the 1997 epidemic

• Published in: Veterinary microbiology 2000-06, Vol.74 (3), p.207-216
• Main Authors: Tsai, Ching-Ping, Pan, Chu-Hsiang, Liu, Min-Yun, Lin, Yeou-liang, Chen, Chi-Min, Huang, Tien-Shine, Cheng, Ivan-Chen, Jong, Ming-Hwa, Yang, Ping-Cheng
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Amino Acid Sequence; Animals; Aphthovirus - classification; Aphthovirus - genetics; Aphthovirus - immunology; Base Sequence; Biological and medical sciences; Consensus Sequence; Disease Outbreaks - veterinary; DNA Primers - chemistry; DNA, Viral - chemistry; Electrophoresis, Agar Gel - veterinary; Epidemiology; Epitopes - chemistry; Foot-and-Mouth Disease - epidemiology; Foot-and-Mouth Disease - virology; Foot-and-mouth disease virus; Fundamental and applied biological sciences. Psychology; Genetic Variation - genetics; Genetics; Microbiology; Molecular Sequence Data; Phylogeny; pigs; Reverse Transcriptase Polymerase Chain Reaction - veterinary; RNA, Viral - chemistry; RNA, Viral - isolation & purification; Sequence Alignment; Sequence Analysis, DNA; Sequence Homology, Amino Acid; Sequence Homology, Nucleic Acid; Serotype O; Swine; Swine Diseases - epidemiology; Swine Diseases - virology; Taiwan; Taiwan - epidemiology; Viral Proteins - chemistry; Viral Proteins - genetics; Viral Proteins - immunology; Virology; VP1 gene
• ISSN: 0378-1135; 1873-2542
• DOI: 10.1016/S0378-1135(00)00182-6

Sequence diversity was assessed of the complete VP1 gene directly amplified from 49 clinical specimens during an explosive foot-and-mouth disease (FMD) outbreak in Taiwan. Type O Taiwan FMD viruses are genetically highly homogenous, as seen by the minute divergence of 0.2–0.9% revealed in 20 variants. The O/HCP-0314/TW/97 and O/TCP-022/TW/97 viral variants dominated FMD outbreaks and were prevalent in most affected pig-raising areas. Comparison of deduced amino acid sequences around the main neutralizable antigenic sites on the VP1 polypeptide showed no significant antigenic variation. However, the O/CHP-158/TW/97 variant had an alternative critical residue at position 43 in antigenic site 3, which may be due to selective pressure in the field. Two vaccine production strains (O1/Manisa/Turkey/69 and O1/Campos/Brazil/71) probably provide partial heterologous protection of swine against O Taiwan viruses. The type O Taiwan variants clustered in sublineage A1 of four main lineages in the phylogenetic tree. The O/Hong Kong/9/94 and O/1685/Moscow/Russia/95 viruses in sublineage A2 are closely related to the O Taiwan variants. The causative agent for the 1997 epidemic presumably originated from a single common source of type O FMD viruses prevalent in neighboring areas.