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  1. A systematic review on current approaches in bat virus discovered between 2018 and 2022
    Mo Y, Lim LS, Ng SK
    J Virol Methods, 2024 Sep;329:115005.
    PMID: 39128772 DOI: 10.1016/j.jviromet.2024.115005
    Zoonotic viruses are widely seen as the primary threat for future pandemics. Bats are the most diverse group of mammals, with more than 1400 species distributed across most habitats on Earth. So far, 31 known virus families were associated with bats, although the understanding of most viruses were insufficient. Continuous efforts to discover, understand and monitor these bats viruses, is thereby an area of public health interest. This systematic review was designed to catalogue publications reporting novel bat virus discoveries within PubMed, SCOPUS, and Web of Science databases, within a 5-year period from 2018 to 2022. Various experimental parameters, including sampling locations, methodology, bat species diversity, similarity to known viruses, species demarcation of new viruses, and genomic sequencing strategies, were extracted from 41 publications and analyzed. In total, 72 novel viruses from 19 virus families were identified between 2018 and 2022, particularly from Genomoviridae (DNA viruses) and Coronaviridae (RNA viruses). That said, only a limited number of bat families featured extensively despite noticeable shift towards next generation sequencing methods and metagenomics pipeline for virus identification across different sampling methods. This review aims to provide a comprehensive analysis of the global efforts made over the past five years to identify and characterize emerging viruses in bat species, and to provide a detailed overview of the current technologies and methodologies used in these studies.
    Matched MeSH terms: DNA Viruses/classification; RNA Viruses/classification; Viruses/classification
  2. Development of oncolytic viruses for cancer therapy
    Abd-Aziz N, Poh CL
    Transl Res, 2021 11;237:98-123.
    PMID: 33905949 DOI: 10.1016/j.trsl.2021.04.008
    Oncolytic virotherapy is a therapeutic approach that uses replication-competent viruses to kill cancers. The ability of oncolytic viruses to selectively replicate in cancer cells leads to direct cell lysis and induction of anticancer immune response. Like other anticancer therapies, oncolytic virotherapy has several limitations such as viral delivery to the target, penetration into the tumor mass, and antiviral immune responses. This review provides an insight into the different characteristics of oncolytic viruses (natural and genetically modified) that contribute to effective applications of oncolytic virotherapy in preclinical and clinical trials, and strategies to overcome the limitations. The potential of oncolytic virotherapy combining with other conventional treatments or cancer immunotherapies involving immune checkpoint inhibitors and CAR-T therapy could form part of future multimodality treatment strategies.
    Matched MeSH terms: Viruses/classification
  3. Tick-borne viruses: a review from the perspective of therapeutic approaches
    Lani R, Moghaddam E, Haghani A, Chang LY, AbuBakar S, Zandi K
    Ticks Tick Borne Dis, 2014 Sep;5(5):457-65.
    PMID: 24907187 DOI: 10.1016/j.ttbdis.2014.04.001
    Several important human diseases worldwide are caused by tick-borne viruses. These diseases have become important public health concerns in recent years. The tick-borne viruses that cause diseases in humans mainly belong to 3 families: Bunyaviridae, Flaviviridae, and Reoviridae. In this review, we focus on therapeutic approaches for several of the more important tick-borne viruses from these 3 families. These viruses are Crimean-Congo hemorrhagic fever virus (CCHF) and the newly discovered tick-borne phleboviruses, known as thrombocytopenia syndromevirus (SFTSV), Heartland virus and Bhanja virus from the family Bunyaviridae, tick-borne encephalitis virus (TBEV), Powassan virus (POWV), Louping-ill virus (LIV), Omsk hemorrhagic fever virus (OHFV), Kyasanur Forest disease virus (KFDV), and Alkhurma hemorrhagic fever virus (AHFV) from the Flaviviridae family. To date, there is no effective antiviral drug available against most of these tick-borne viruses. Although there is common usage of antiviral drugs such as ribavirin for CCHF treatment in some countries, there are concerns that ribavirin may not be as effective as once thought against CCHF. Herein, we discuss also the availability of vaccines for the control of these viral infections. The lack of treatment and prevention approaches for these viruses is highlighted, and we hope that this review may increase public health awareness with regard to the threat posed by this group of viruses.
    Matched MeSH terms: Viruses/classification*
  4. Fulltext Detection of Laem-Singh virus in cultured Penaeus monodon shrimp from several sites in the Indo-Pacific region
    Sittidilokratna N, Dangtip S, Sritunyalucksana K, Babu R, Pradeep B, Mohan CV, et al.
    Dis Aquat Organ, 2009 Apr 27;84(3):195-200.
    PMID: 19565696 DOI: 10.3354/dao02059
    Laem-Singh virus (LSNV) is a positive-sense single-stranded RNA (ssRNA) virus that was recently identified in Penaeus monodon shrimp in Thailand displaying signs of slow growth syndrome. A total of 326 shrimp collected between 1998 and 2007 from countries in the Indo-Pacific region were tested by RT-PCR for evidence of LSNV infection. The samples comprised batches of whole postlarvae, and lymphoid organ, gill, muscle or pleopod tissue of juvenile, subadult and adult shrimp. LSNV was not detected in 96 P. monodon, P. japonicus or P. merguiensis from Australia or 16 P. monodon from Fiji, Philippines, Sri Lanka and Mozambique. There was no evidence of LSNV infection in 73 healthy juvenile P. vannamei collected during 2006 from ponds at 9 locations in Thailand. However, LNSV was detected in each of 6 healthy P. monodon tested from Malaysia and Indonesia, 2 of 6 healthy P. monodon tested from Vietnam and 39 of 40 P. monodon collected from slow-growth ponds in Thailand. A survey of 81 P. monodon collected in 2007 from Andhra Pradesh, India, indicated 56.8% prevalence of LSNV infection but no clear association with disease or slow growth. Phylogenetic analysis of PCR amplicons obtained from samples from India, Vietnam, Malaysia and Thailand indicated that nucleotide sequence variation was very low (>98% identity) and there was no clustering of viruses according to site of isolation or the health status of the shrimp. The data suggests that LSNV exists as a single genetic lineage and occurs commonly in healthy P. monodon in parts of Asia.
    Matched MeSH terms: RNA Viruses/classification
  5. DiMA: sequence diversity dynamics analyser for viruses
    Tharanga S, Ünlü ES, Hu Y, Sjaugi MF, Çelik MA, Hekimoğlu H, et al.
    Brief Bioinform, 2024 Nov 22;26(1).
    PMID: 39592151 DOI: 10.1093/bib/bbae607
    Sequence diversity is one of the major challenges in the design of diagnostic, prophylactic, and therapeutic interventions against viruses. DiMA is a novel tool that is big data-ready and designed to facilitate the dissection of sequence diversity dynamics for viruses. DiMA stands out from other diversity analysis tools by offering various unique features. DiMA provides a quantitative overview of sequence (DNA/RNA/protein) diversity by use of Shannon's entropy corrected for size bias, applied via a user-defined k-mer sliding window to an input alignment file, and each k-mer position is dissected to various diversity motifs. The motifs are defined based on the probability of distinct sequences at a given k-mer alignment position, whereby an index is the predominant sequence, while all the others are (total) variants to the index. The total variants are sub-classified into the major (most common) variant, minor variants (occurring more than once and of incidence lower than the major), and the unique (singleton) variants. DiMA allows user-defined, sequence metadata enrichment for analyses of the motifs. The application of DiMA was demonstrated for the alignment data of the relatively conserved Spike protein (2,106,985 sequences) of the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) and the relatively highly diverse pol gene (2637) of the human immunodeficiency virus-1 (HIV-1). The tool is publicly available as a web server (https://dima.bezmialem.edu.tr), as a Python library (via PyPi) and as a command line client (via GitHub).
    Matched MeSH terms: Viruses/classification
  6. Immunotyping of different strains of Japanese encephalitis virus by antibody-absorption, haemagglutination-inhibition and complement-fixation tests
    Okuno T, Okada T, Kondo A, Suzuki M, Kobayashi M, Oya A
    Bull World Health Organ, 1968;38(4):547-63.
    PMID: 5302450
    The immunological characteristics of 26 strains of Japanese encephalitis virus (JEV) isolated in Japan and Malaya between 1935 and 1966 have been investigated mainly by the antibody-absorption variant of the haemagglutination-inhibition test, and to a certain extent also by conventional haemagglutination-inhibition and complement-fixation tests. The antibody-absorption technique shows promise as a routine method for the immunotyping of JEV.At present, two immunotypes can be distinguished. One comprises 2 strains, Nakayama-NIH and I-58, and is designated as the I-58 immunotype. The other immunotype, JaGAr 01, comprises 17 strains which share the characteristics of the JaGAr 01 strain, including one subline of the Nakayama strain, Nakayama-Yakken. The Nakayama-RFVL strain was found to have the characteristics of both immunotypes. The I-58 immunotype differs more markedly from related arboviruses, such as the Murray Valley encephalitis virus and the West Nile Eg101 strain, than does the JaGAr 01 immunotype.Evidence is presented which suggests that a given JEV strain can change immunotype on repeated passage through mice.
    Matched MeSH terms: Encephalitis Viruses/classification*
  7. [Emergence of new viruses in Asia: is climate change involved?]
    Chastel C
    Med Mal Infect, 2004 Nov;34(11):499-505.
    PMID: 15620053
    Tropical Africa is not the only area where deadly viruses have recently emerged. In South-East Asia severe epidemics of dengue hemorrhagic fever started in 1954 and flu pandemics have originated from China such as the Asian flu (H2N2) in 1957, the Hong-Kong flu (H3N2) in 1968, and the Russian flu (H1N1) in 1977. However, it is especially during the last ten years that very dangerous viruses for mankind have repeatedly developed in Asia, with the occurrence of Alkhurma hemorrhagic fever in Saudi Arabia (1995), avian flu (H5N1) in Hong-Kong (1997), Nipah virus encephalitis in Malaysia (1998,) and, above all, the SARS pandemic fever from Southern China (2002). The evolution of these viral diseases was probably not directly affected by climate change. In fact, their emergential success may be better explained by the development of large industry poultry flocks increasing the risks of epizootics, dietary habits, economic and demographic constraints, and negligence in the surveillance and reporting of the first cases.
    Matched MeSH terms: Viruses/classification
  8. Isolation and Quantification of Mimivirus-Like and Marseillevirus-Like Viruses from Soil Samples in An Aboriginal (Orang asli) Village in Peninsular Malaysia
    Tan YF, Lim CY, Chong CW, Lim PKC, Yap IKS, Leong PP, et al.
    Intervirology, 2018;61(2):92-95.
    PMID: 30121676 DOI: 10.1159/000491602
    BACKGROUND: The giant amoebal viruses of Mimivirus and Marseillevirus are large DNA viruses and have been documented in water, soil, and sewage samples. The trend of discovering these giant amoebal viruses has been increasing throughout Asia with Japan, India, and Saudi Arabia being the latest countries to document the presence of these viruses. To date, there have been no reports of large amoebal viruses being isolated in South East Asia.

    OBJECTIVE: In this study, we aim to discover these viruses from soil samples in an aboriginal village (Serendah village) in Peninsular -Malaysia.

    METHOD AND RESULTS: We successfully detected and isolated both Mimivirus-like and Marseillevirus-like viruses using Acanthamoeba castellanii. Phylogeny analysis identified them as Mimivirus and Marseillevirus, respectively.

    CONCLUSION: The ubiquitous nature of both Mimivirus and Marseillevirus is further confirmed in our study as they are detected in higher quantity in soil that is near to water vicinities in an aboriginal village in Peninsular Malaysia. However, this study is limited by our inability to investigate the impact of Mimivirus and Marseillevirus on the aboriginal villagers. More studies on the potential impact of these viruses on human health, especially on the aborigines, are warranted.

    Matched MeSH terms: DNA Viruses/classification*
  9. Metagenomic Analysis of the Effect of Enteromorpha prolifera Bloom on Microbial Community and Function in Aquaculture Environment
    Sun F, Wang C, Chen H, Zheng Z
    Curr Microbiol, 2020 May;77(5):816-825.
    PMID: 31927597 DOI: 10.1007/s00284-019-01862-x
    Enteromorpha prolifera blooms considerably affected coastal environments in recent years. However, the effects of E. prolifera on microbial ecology and function remained unknown. In this study, metagenomic sequencing was used to investigate the effect of E. prolifera bloom on the microbial communities and functional genes in an aquaculture environment. Results showed that E. prolifera bloom could significantly alter the microbial composition and abundance, and heterotrophic bacteria comprised the major groups in the E. prolifera bloom pond, which was dominated by Actinomycetales and Flavobacteriales. The study indicated that viruses played an important role in shaping the microbial community and diversity during E. prolifera bloom. These viruses affected various dominant microbial taxa (such as Rhodobacteraceae, Synechococcus, and Prochlorococcus), which produced an obvious impact on potential nutrient transformation. Functional annotation analysis indicated that E. prolifera bloom would considerably shift the metabolism function by altering the structure and abundance of the microbial community. E. prolifera bloom pond had the low ability of potential metabolic capabilities of nitrogen, sulfur, and phosphate, whereas promoted gene abundance of genetic information processing. These changes in the microbial community and function could produce serious effect on aquaculture ecosystem.
    Matched MeSH terms: Viruses/classification
  10. Fulltext Isolation and Identification of Inter-Species Enterovirus Recombinant Genomes
    Bentley K, Tee HK, Pearson A, Lowry K, Waugh S, Jones S, et al.
    Viruses, 2021 11 29;13(12).
    PMID: 34960659 DOI: 10.3390/v13122390
    Positive-strand RNA virus evolution is partly attributed to the process of recombination. Although common between closely genetically related viruses, such as within species of the Enterovirus genus of the Picornaviridae family, inter-species recombination is rarely observed in nature. Recent studies have shown recombination is a ubiquitous process, resulting in a wide range of recombinant genomes and progeny viruses. While not all recombinant genomes yield infectious progeny virus, their existence and continued evolution during replication have critical implications for the evolution of the virus population. In this study, we utilised an in vitro recombination assay to demonstrate inter-species recombination events between viruses from four enterovirus species, A-D. We show that inter-species recombinant genomes are generated in vitro with polymerase template-switching events occurring within the virus polyprotein coding region. However, these genomes did not yield infectious progeny virus. Analysis and attempted recovery of a constructed recombinant cDNA revealed a restriction in positive-strand but not negative-strand RNA synthesis, indicating a significant block in replication. This study demonstrates the propensity for inter-species recombination at the genome level but suggests that significant sequence plasticity would be required in order to overcome blocks in the virus life cycle and allow for the production of infectious viruses.
    Matched MeSH terms: Reassortant Viruses/classification
  11. Fulltext Discovery of Known and Novel Viruses in Wild and Cultivated Blueberry in Florida through Viral Metagenomic Approaches
    Saad N, Olmstead JW, Varsani A, Polston JE, Jones JB, Folimonova SY, et al.
    Viruses, 2021 Jun 18;13(6).
    PMID: 34207047 DOI: 10.3390/v13061165
    Southern highbush blueberry (interspecific hybrids of Vaccinium corymbosum L.) is cultivated near wild V. corymbosum as well as closely related species in Florida, USA. The expansion of blueberry cultivation into new areas in Florida and deployment of new cultivars containing viruses can potentially increase the diversity of viruses in wild and cultivated V. corymbosum. In this study, viral diversity in wild and cultivated blueberries (V. corymbosum) is described using a metagenomic approach. RNA viromes from V. corymbosum plants collected from six locations (two cultivated and four wild) in North Central Florida were generated by high throughput sequencing (HTS) and analyzed using a bioinformatic analysis pipeline. De novo assembled contigs obtained from viromes of both commercial and wild sites produced sequences with similarities to plant virus species from a diverse range of families (Amalgaviridae, Caulimoviridae, Endornaviridae, Ophioviridae, Phenuiviridae, and Virgaviridae). In addition, this study has enabled the identification of blueberry latent virus (BlLV) and blueberry mosaic associated ophiovirus (BlMaV) for the first time in Florida, as well as a tentative novel tepovirus (blueberry virus T) (BlVT) in blueberry. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first study that compares viral diversity in wild and cultivated blueberry using a metagenomic approach.
    Matched MeSH terms: Plant Viruses/classification
  12. Fulltext Blueberry red ringspot virus genomes from Florida inferred through analysis of blueberry root transcriptomes
    Saad N, Alcalá-Briseño RI, Polston JE, Olmstead JW, Varsani A, Harmon PF
    Sci Rep, 2020 Jul 21;10(1):12043.
    PMID: 32694553 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-020-68654-3
    A growing number of metagenomics-based approaches have been used for the discovery of viruses in insects, cultivated plants, and water in agricultural production systems. In this study, sixteen blueberry root transcriptomes from eight clonally propagated blueberry plants of cultivar 'Emerald' (interspecific hybrid of Vaccinium corymbosum and V. darrowi) generated as part of a separate study on varietal tolerance to soil salinity were analyzed for plant viral sequences. The objective was to determine if the asymptomatic plants harbored the latent blueberry red ringspot virus (BRRV) in their roots. The only currently known mechanism of transmission of BRRV is through vegetative propagation; however, the virus can remain latent for years with some plants of 'Emerald' never developing red ringspot symptoms. Bioinformatic analyses of 'Emerald' transcriptomes using de novo assembly and reference-based mapping approaches yielded eight complete viral genomes of BRRV (genus Soymovirus, family Caulimoviridae). Validation in vitro by PCR confirmed the presence of BRRV in 100% of the 'Emerald' root samples. Sequence and phylogenetic analyses showed 94% to 97% nucleotide identity between BRRV genomes from Florida and sequences from Czech Republic, Japan, Poland, Slovenia, and the United States. Taken together, this study documented the first detection of a complete BRRV genome from roots of asymptomatic blueberry plants and in Florida through in silico analysis of plant transcriptomes.
    Matched MeSH terms: Plant Viruses/classification
  13. Pathogenic viruses associated with bats of Malaysia
    Balinu CP, Diam S, Chua TH
    Trop Biomed, 2024 Sep 01;41(3):230-240.
    PMID: 39548775 DOI: 10.47665/tb.41.3.001
    Numerous human diseases, including those caused by viruses like Nipah virus and SARS-CoV, can be traced back to bats as their origin. Malaysia, notably Sabah and Sarawak in Borneo Island, is home to a rich diversity of bats that serve as hosts for various viruses. This comprehensive review represents the inaugural exploration of viruses found in Malaysian bats, as documented in scientific journals. It also encompasses documented instances of bat virus-related disease outbreaks in Malaysia up to the present day, along with an analysis of the risk factors associated with virus spillover events. Furthermore, this review offers insights into prospective research areas of significance and suggests potential mitigation strategies.
    Matched MeSH terms: Viruses/classification
  14. Fulltext The gut virome in two indigenous populations from Malaysia
    Lee CZ, Zoqratt MZHM, Phipps ME, Barr JJ, Lal SK, Ayub Q, et al.
    Sci Rep, 2022 Feb 03;12(1):1824.
    PMID: 35115615 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-022-05656-3
    The human gut contains a complex microbiota dominated by bacteriophages but also containing other viruses and bacteria and fungi. There are a growing number of techniques for the extraction, sequencing, and analysis of the virome but currently no standardized protocols. This study established an effective workflow for virome analysis to investigate the virome of stool samples from two understudied ethnic groups from Malaysia: the Jakun and Jehai Orang Asli. By using the virome extraction and analysis workflow with the Oxford Nanopore Technology, long-read sequencing successfully captured close to full-length viral genomes. The virome composition of the two indigenous Malaysian communities were remarkably different from those found in other parts of the world. Additionally, plant viruses found in the viromes of these individuals were attributed to traditional food-seeking methods. This study establishes a human gut virome workflow and extends insights into the healthy human gut virome, laying the groundwork for comparative studies.
    Matched MeSH terms: Viruses/classification
  15. Fulltext Molecular detection of HIV-1 subtype B, CRF01_AE, CRF33_01B, and newly emerging recombinant lineages in Malaysia
    Chook JB, Ong LY, Takebe Y, Chan KG, Choo M, Kamarulzaman A, et al.
    Am J Trop Med Hyg, 2015 Mar;92(3):507-512.
    PMID: 25535315 DOI: 10.4269/ajtmh.14-0681
    A molecular genotyping assay for human immunodeficiency virus type 1 (HIV-1) circulating in Southeast Asia is difficult to design because of the high level of genetic diversity. We developed a multiplex real-time polymerase chain reaction (PCR) assay to detect subtype B, CRF01_AE, CRF33_01B, and three newly described circulating recombinant forms, (CRFs) (CRF53_01B, CRF54_01B, and CRF58_01B). A total of 785 reference genomes were used for subtype-specific primers and TaqMan probes design targeting the gag, pol, and env genes. The performance of this assay was compared and evaluated with direct sequencing and phylogenetic analysis. A total of 180 HIV-infected subjects from Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia were screened and 171 samples were successfully genotyped, in agreement with the phylogenetic data. The HIV-1 genotype distribution was as follows: subtype B (16.7%); CRF01_AE (52.8%); CRF33_01B (24.4%); CRF53_01B (1.1%); CRF54_01B (0.6%); and CRF01_AE/B unique recombinant forms (4.4%). The overall accuracy of the genotyping assay was over 95.0%, in which the sensitivities for subtype B, CRF01_AE, and CRF33_01B detection were 100%, 100%, and 97.7%, respectively. The specificity of genotyping was 100%, inter-subtype specificities were > 95% and the limit of detection of 10(3) copies/mL for plasma. The newly developed real-time PCR assay offers a rapid and cost-effective alternative for large-scale molecular epidemiological surveillance for HIV-1.
    Matched MeSH terms: Reassortant Viruses/classification*
  16. Molecular Epidemiology of a novel re-assorted epidemic strain of equine influenza virus in Pakistan in 2015-16
    Khan A, Mushtaq MH, Ahmad MUD, Nazir J, Farooqi SH, Khan A
    Virus Res, 2017 08 15;240:56-63.
    PMID: 28757141 DOI: 10.1016/j.virusres.2017.07.022
    BACKGROUND: A widespread epidemic of equine influenza (EI) occurred in nonvaccinated equine population across multiple districts in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Province of Pakistan during 2015-2016.

    OBJECTIVES AND METHODS: An epidemiological surveillance study was conducted from Oct 2015 to April 2016 to investigate the outbreak. EI virus strains were isolated in embryonated eggs from suspected equines swab samples and were subjected to genome sequencing using M13 tagged segment specific primers. Phylogenetic analyses of the nucleotide sequences were concluded using Geneious. Haemagglutinin (HA), Neuraminidase (NA), Matrix (M) and nucleoprotein (NP) genes nucleotide and amino acid sequences of the isolated viruses were aligned with those of OIE recommended, FC-1, FC-2, and contemporary isolates of influenza A viruses from other species.

    RESULTS: HA and NA genes amino acid sequences were very similar to Tennessee/14 and Malaysia/15 of FC-1 and clustered with the contemporary isolates recently reported in the USA. Phylogenetic analysis showed that these viruses were mostly identical (with 99.6% and 97.4% nucleotide homology) to, and were reassortants containing chicken/Pakistan/14 (H7N3) and Canine/Beijing/10 (H3N2) like M and NP genes. Genetic analysis indicated that A/equine/Pakistan/16 viruses were most probably the result of several re-assortments between the co-circulating avian and equine viruses, and were genetically unlike the other equine viruses due to the presence of H7N3 or H3N2 like M and NP genes.

    CONCLUSION: Epidemiological data analysis indicated the potential chance of mixed, and management such as mixed farming system by keeping equine, canine and backyard poultry together in confined premises as the greater risk factors responsible for the re-assortments. Other factors might have contributed to the spread of the epidemic, including low awareness level, poor control of equine movements, and absence of border control disease strategies.

    Matched MeSH terms: Reassortant Viruses/classification
  17. Fulltext A Novel RNA Virus, Macrobrachium rosenbergii Golda Virus (MrGV), Linked to Mass Mortalities of the Larval Giant Freshwater Prawn in Bangladesh
    Hooper C, Debnath PP, Biswas S, van Aerle R, Bateman KS, Basak SK, et al.
    Viruses, 2020 10 02;12(10).
    PMID: 33023199 DOI: 10.3390/v12101120
    Mass mortalities of the larval stage of the giant freshwater prawn, Macrobrachium rosenbergii, have been occurring in Bangladesh since 2011. Mortalities can reach 100% and have resulted in an 80% decline in the number of hatcheries actively producing M. rosenbergii. To investigate a causative agent for the mortalities, a disease challenge was carried out using infected material from a hatchery experiencing mortalities. Moribund larvae from the challenge were prepared for metatranscriptomic sequencing. De novo virus assembly revealed a 29 kb single‑stranded positive-sense RNA virus with similarities in key protein motif sequences to yellow head virus (YHV), an RNA virus that causes mass mortalities in marine shrimp aquaculture, and other viruses in the Nidovirales order. Primers were designed against the novel virus and used to screen cDNA from larvae sampled from hatcheries in the South of Bangladesh from two consecutive years. Larvae from all hatcheries screened from both years were positive by PCR for the novel virus, including larvae from a hatchery that at the point of sampling appeared healthy, but later experienced mortalities. These screens suggest that the virus is widespread in M. rosenbergii hatchery culture in southern Bangladesh, and that early detection of the virus can be achieved by PCR. The hypothesised protein motifs of Macrobrachium rosenbergii golda virus (MrGV) suggest that it is likely to be a new species within the Nidovirales order. Biosecurity measures should be taken in order to mitigate global spread through the movement of post-larvae within and between countries, which has previously been linked to other virus outbreaks in crustacean aquaculture.
    Matched MeSH terms: RNA Viruses/classification*
  18. Intercontinental circulation of human influenza A(H1N2) reassortant viruses during the 2001-2002 influenza season
    Xu X, Smith CB, Mungall BA, Lindstrom SE, Hall HE, Subbarao K, et al.
    J Infect Dis, 2002 Nov 15;186(10):1490-3.
    PMID: 12404167
    Reassortant influenza A viruses bearing the H1 subtype of hemagglutinin (HA) and the N2 subtype of neuraminidase (NA) were isolated from humans in the United States, Canada, Singapore, Malaysia, India, Oman, Egypt, and several countries in Europe during the 2001-2002 influenza season. The HAs of these H1N2 viruses were similar to that of the A/New Caledonia/20/99(H1N1) vaccine strain both antigenically and genetically, and the NAs were antigenically and genetically related to those of recent human H3N2 reference strains, such as A/Moscow/10/99(H3N2). All 6 internal genes of the H1N2 reassortants examined originated from an H3N2 virus. This article documents the first widespread circulation of H1N2 reassortants on 4 continents. The current influenza vaccine is expected to provide good protection against H1N2 viruses, because it contains the A/New Caledonia/20/99(H1N1) and A/Moscow/10/99(H3N2)-like viruses, which have H1 and N2 antigens that are similar to those of recent H1N2 viruses.
    Matched MeSH terms: Reassortant Viruses/classification
  19. Fulltext Group B adenovirus enadenotucirev infects polarised colorectal cancer cells efficiently from the basolateral surface expected to be encountered during intravenous delivery to treat disseminated cancer
    Chia SL, Lei J, Ferguson DJP, Dyer A, Fisher KD, Seymour LW
    Virology, 2017 05;505:162-171.
    PMID: 28260622 DOI: 10.1016/j.virol.2017.02.011
    Enadenotucirev (EnAd) is a group B oncolytic adenovirus developed for systemic delivery and currently undergoing clinical evaluation for advanced cancer therapy. For differentiated carcinomas, systemic delivery would likely expose virus particles to the basolateral surface of cancer cells rather than the apical surface encountered during natural infection. Here, we compare the ability of EnAd and adenovirus type-5 (Ad5) to infect polarised colorectal carcinoma cells from the apical or basolateral surfaces. Whereas Ad5 infection was more efficient via the apical than basolateral surface, EnAd readily infected cells from either surface. Progeny particles from EnAd were released preferentially via the apical surface for all cell lines and routes of infection. These data further support the utility of group B adenoviruses for systemic delivery and suggest that progeny virus are more likely to be released into the tumour rather than back through the basolateral surface into the blood stream.
    Matched MeSH terms: Oncolytic Viruses/classification
  20. Fulltext Diversity of respiratory viruses detected among hospitalized children with acute lower respiratory tract infections at Hospital Serdang, Malaysia
    Etemadi MR, Jalilian FA, Othman N, Lye MS, Ansari S, Yubbu P, et al.
    J Virol Methods, 2019 07;269:1-6.
    PMID: 30910688 DOI: 10.1016/j.jviromet.2019.03.013
    BACKGROUND: The role of respiratory viruses as the major cause of acute lower respiratory tract infections (ALRTIs) in children is becoming increasingly evident due to the use of sensitive molecular detection methods. The aim of this study was to use conventional and molecular detection methods to assess the epidemiology of respiratory viral infections in children less than five years of age that were hospitalized with ALRTIs.

    METHODS: The cross-sectional study was designed to investigate the occurrence of respiratory viruses including respiratory syncytisl virus (RSV), human metapneumovirus (HMPV), influenza virus A and B (IFV-A and B), parainfluenzavirus 1, 2, 3 and 4 (PIV 1, 2, 3 and 4), human rhinoviruses (HRV), human enterovirus (HEV), human coronaviruses (HCoV) 229E and OC43, human bocavirus (HBoV) and human adenovirus (HAdV) in hospitalized children with ALRTIs, at Hospital Serdang, Malaysia, from June 16 to December 21, 2009. The study was also designed in part to assess the performance of the conventional methods against molecular methods.

    RESULTS: Viral pathogens were detected in 158 (95.8%) of the patients. Single virus infections were detected in 114 (67.9%) patients; 46 (27.9%) were co-infected with different viruses including double-virus infections in 37 (22.4%) and triple-virus infections in 9 (5.5%) cases. Approximately 70% of samples were found to be positive using conventional methods compared with 96% using molecular methods. A wide range of respiratory viruses were detected in the study. There was a high prevalence of RSV (50.3%) infections, particularly group B viruses. Other etiological agents including HAdV, HMPV, IFV-A, PIV 1-3, HBoV, HCoV-OC43 and HEV were detected in 14.5, 9.6, 9.1, 4.8, 3.6, 2.4 and 1.8 percent of the samples, respectively.

    CONCLUSION: Our results demonstrated the increased sensitivity of molecular detection methods compared with conventional methods for the diagnosis of ARTIs in hospitalized children. This is the first report of HMPV infections in Malaysia.

    Matched MeSH terms: Viruses/classification*
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