Moku virus; a new Iflavirus found in wasps, honey bees and Varroa

• Published in: Scientific reports 2016-10, Vol.6 (1), p.34983-34983, Article 34983
• Main Authors: Mordecai, Gideon J, Brettell, Laura E, Pachori, Purnima, Villalobos, Ethel M., Martin, Stephen J, Jones, Ian M, Schroeder, Declan C
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: 631/326/596/2142; 631/326/596/2564; Amino acids; Animals; Bees; Bees - virology; Genome, Viral; Genomes; Harvest; Hawaii; Honey; Host Specificity; Humanities and Social Sciences; Infectious diseases; Insect Viruses - classification; Insect Viruses - genetics; Insect Viruses - isolation & purification; multidisciplinary; Nucleotide sequence; Nucleotides; Paralysis; Phylogeny; RNA viruses; RNA Viruses - classification; RNA Viruses - genetics; RNA Viruses - isolation & purification; RNA, Viral - genetics; Science; Varroidae - virology; Viral Proteins - genetics; Viruses; Wasps - virology
• ISSN: 2045-2322; 2045-2322
• DOI: 10.1038/srep34983

There is an increasing global trend of emerging infectious diseases (EIDs) affecting a wide range of species, including honey bees. The global epidemic of the single stranded RNA Deformed wing virus (DWV), driven by the spread of Varroa destructor has been well documented. However, DWV is just one of many insect RNA viruses which infect a wide range of hosts. Here we report the full genome sequence of a novel Iflavirus named Moku virus (MV), discovered in the social wasp Vespula pensylvanica collected in Hawaii. The novel genome is 10,056 nucleotides long and encodes a polyprotein of 3050 amino acids. Phylogenetic analysis showed that MV is most closely related to Slow bee paralysis virus (SBPV), which is highly virulent in honey bees but rarely detected. Worryingly, MV sequences were also detected in honey bees and Varroa from the same location, suggesting that MV can also infect other hymenopteran and Acari hosts.