Genetic diversity and phylogenetic analysis of newly discovered bat astroviruses in Korea

• Published in: Archives of virology 2018-11, Vol.163 (11), p.3065-3072
• Main Authors: Lee, Sook-Young, Son, Ki-Dong, Yong-Sik, Kim, Wang, Seung-Jun, Kim, Yong-Kwan, Jheong, Weon-Hwa, Oem, Jae-Ku
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Animals; Astroviridae - classification; Astroviridae - genetics; Astroviridae - isolation & purification; Astroviridae Infections - veterinary; Astroviridae Infections - virology; Bats; Biomedical and Life Sciences; Biomedicine; Chiroptera; Chiroptera - virology; DNA-directed RNA polymerase; Genetic analysis; Genetic diversity; Genetic Variation; Infectious Diseases; Medical Microbiology; Original; Original Article; Phylogenetics; Phylogeny; Republic of Korea; RNA polymerase; RNA Replicase - genetics; RNA-directed RNA polymerase; Spatial distribution; Species; Temporal distribution; Viral Proteins - genetics; Virology
• ISSN: 0304-8608; 1432-8798
• DOI: 10.1007/s00705-018-3992-6

Bats have been identified as a natural reservoir for several potentially zoonotic viruses. Recently, astroviruses have been reported in bats in many countries, but not Korea. We collected 363 bat samples from thirteen species at twenty-nine sites in Korea across 2016 and tested them for astrovirus. The detection of the RNA-dependent RNA polymerase ( RdRp ) gene in bat astroviruses was confirmed in thirty-four bats across four bat species in Korea: twenty-five from Miniopterus fuliginosusi , one from Myotis macrodactylus , four from M. petax , and four from Rhinolophus ferrumequinum. The highest detection rates for astrovirus were found in Sunchang (61.5%, 8/13 bats), and in the samples collected in April (63.2%, 12/19 bats). The amino acid identity of astroviral sequences identified from bat samples was ≥ 46.6%. More specifically, the amino acid identity within multiple clones from individual bats was ≥ 50.8%. Additionally, the phylogenetic topology between astroviruses from different bat families showed a close relationship. Furthermore, phylogenetic analysis of the partial ORF2 sequence of bat astroviruses was found to have a maximum similarity of 73.3–74.8% with available bat astrovirus sequences. These results indicate potential multiple-infection by several bat astrovirus species in individual bats, or hyperpolymorphism in the astrovirus strains, as well as the transmission of astroviruses across bat families; furthermore, our phylogenetic analysis of the partial ORF2 implied that a novel astrovirus may exist. However, the wide diversity of astroviral sequences appeared to have no significant correlation with bat species or the spatiotemporal distribution of Korean bat astroviruses.