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Raines C, Lovy J, Phelps N, Mor S, Ng TFF, Iwanowicz L. Discovery and Genomic Characterization of a Novel Hepadnavirus from Asymptomatic Anadromous Alewife ( Alosa pseudoharengus). Viruses 2024; 16:824. [PMID: 38932117 PMCID: PMC11209213 DOI: 10.3390/v16060824] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/08/2024] [Revised: 05/12/2024] [Accepted: 05/18/2024] [Indexed: 06/28/2024] Open
Abstract
The alewife (Alosa pseudoharengus) is an anadromous herring that inhabits waters of northeastern North America. This prey species is a critical forage for piscivorous birds, mammals, and fishes in estuarine and oceanic ecosystems. During a discovery project tailored to identify potentially emerging pathogens of this species, we obtained the full genome of a novel hepadnavirus (ApHBV) from clinically normal alewives collected from the Maurice River, Great Egg Harbor River, and Delaware River in New Jersey, USA during 2015-2018. This previously undescribed hepadnavirus contained a circular DNA genome of 3146 nucleotides. Phylogenetic analysis of the polymerase protein placed this virus in the clade of metahepadnaviruses (family: Hepadnaviridae; genus: Metahepadnavirus). There was no evidence of pathology in the internal organs of infected fish and virions were not observed in liver tissues by electron microscopy. We developed a Taqman-based quantitative (qPCR) assay and screened 182 individuals collected between 2015 and 2018 and detected additional qPCR positives (n = 6). An additional complete genome was obtained in 2018 and it has 99.4% genome nucleotide identity to the first virus. Single-nucleotide polymorphisms were observed between the two genomes, including 7/9 and 12/8 synonymous vs nonsynonymous mutations across the polymerase and surface proteins, respectively. While there was no evidence that this virus was associated with disease in this species, alewives are migratory interjurisdictional fishes of management concern. Identification of microbial agents using de novo sequencing and other advanced technologies is a critical aspect of understanding disease ecology for informed population management.
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Affiliation(s)
- Clayton Raines
- U.S. Geological Survey, Eastern Ecological Science Center, Leetown Research Laboratory, 11649 Leetown Road, Kearneysville, WV 25430, USA;
- West Virginia Cooperative Fish and Wildlife Research Unit, Davis College of Agriculture, Natural Resources & Design, West Virginia University, 1 Waterfront Pl, Morgantown, WV 26506, USA
| | - Jan Lovy
- U.S. Geological Survey, Western Fisheries Research Center, Seattle, WA 98115, USA;
- NJ Fish & Wildlife, Office of Fish and Wildlife Health and Forensics, 605 Pequest Rd, Oxford, NJ 07863, USA
| | - Nicolas Phelps
- Department of Fisheries, Wildlife, and Conservation Biology, College of Food, Agriculture, and Natural Resource Sciences, University of Minnesota, St. Paul, MN 55108, USA;
| | - Sunil Mor
- Animal Disease Research and Diagnostic Laboratory, South Dakota State University, 1155 North Campus Drive, Brookings, SD 570077, USA;
- Veterinary Diagnostic Laboratory, Department of Veterinary Population Medicine, University of Minnesota, Saint Paul, MN 55455, USA
| | - Terry Fei Fan Ng
- Department of Pathology, University of Georgia, Athens, GA 30602, USA;
| | - Luke Iwanowicz
- U.S. Geological Survey, Eastern Ecological Science Center, Leetown Research Laboratory, 11649 Leetown Road, Kearneysville, WV 25430, USA;
- U.S. Department of Agriculture-Agricultural Research Service, National Center for Cool and Cold Water Aquaculture, Kearneysville, WV 25430, USA
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Genome Sequences of 26 White Sucker Hepatitis B Virus Isolates from White Sucker, Catostomus commersonii, Inhabiting Transboundary Waters from Alberta, Canada, to the Great Lakes, USA. Microbiol Resour Announc 2021; 10:10/11/e01425-20. [PMID: 33737368 PMCID: PMC7975886 DOI: 10.1128/mra.01425-20] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/20/2022] Open
Abstract
We report 26 genome sequences of the white sucker hepatitis B virus (WSHBV) from the white sucker, Catostomus commersonii The genome length ranged from 3,541 to 3,543 bp, and nucleotide identity was 96.7% or greater across genomes. This work suggests a geographical range of this virus that minimally extends from the Athabasca River, Alberta, Canada, to the Great Lakes, USA.
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