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Infection, Genetics and Evolution :... Oct 2014Rabies is a fatal viral disease of serious public health implication. The disease is enzootic in India. In the present study, thirty six rabies virus isolates were...
Rabies is a fatal viral disease of serious public health implication. The disease is enzootic in India. In the present study, thirty six rabies virus isolates were obtained from terrestrial mammals of India during 2002-2012. Ecto-domain coding region of the glycoprotein gene from all the isolates were sequenced and the phylogenetic analysis was performed in relation to the global rabies and rabies related virus isolates. The Indian isolates grouped into two distinctly separate lineages with majority of the Indian isolates in Arctic like 1 lineage and the remaining isolates in sub-continental lineage. Isolates of the two distinct lineages were identified simultaneously from the same geographical region. Time scaled phylogenetic tree indicated that the sub-continental lineage of the virus is one of the earliest clade of rabies virus that diverged from bat rabies virus. On the contrary, the Arctic-like 1 lineage of India appeared to be a more recent divergence event. The amino acid sequence comparison revealed that all the major antigenic sites were almost conserved among the Indian isolates whereas few amino acid variations could be identified around site IIa, minor site I and IV. The dN/dS study based on G ecto-domain is in support of the earlier reports of strong purifying selection. In conclusion, it is evident that the Indian rabies virus isolates are of two major distinct lineages with distant phylogenetic and evolutionary relationship.
Topics: Amino Acid Sequence; Animals; Antigens, Viral; Evolution, Molecular; Genome, Viral; Geography; Humans; India; Molecular Sequence Data; Phylogeny; Phylogeography; Rabies; Rabies virus; Sequence Alignment; Sequence Analysis, DNA
PubMed: 25077994
DOI: 10.1016/j.meegid.2014.07.014 -
Journal of Neurovirology Feb 2005Rabies is a central nervous system (CNS) disease that is almost invariably fatal. Neurotropism, neuroinvasiveness, and transsynaptic spread are the main features that... (Review)
Review
Rabies is a central nervous system (CNS) disease that is almost invariably fatal. Neurotropism, neuroinvasiveness, and transsynaptic spread are the main features that determine the pathogenesis of rabies. Recent advances in rabies virus (RV) research, which made direct genetic manipulations of the RV genome possible, greatly improved the understanding of the role of different viral and host cell factors in the pathogenesis of rabies. Here the authors discuss molecular mechanisms associated with rabies RV infection and its spread to the CNS.
Topics: Brain; Rabies Vaccines; Rabies virus
PubMed: 15804964
DOI: 10.1080/13550280590900436 -
Trends in Neurosciences Oct 2017Although modified rabies viruses have emerged as a powerful tool for tracing the inputs to genetically defined populations of neurons, the toxicity of the virus has...
Although modified rabies viruses have emerged as a powerful tool for tracing the inputs to genetically defined populations of neurons, the toxicity of the virus has limited its utility. A recent study employed a self-inactivating rabies (SiR) virus that enables recording or manipulation of targeted neurons for months.
Topics: DNA; Neurons; Rabies virus
PubMed: 28890212
DOI: 10.1016/j.tins.2017.08.005 -
Emerging Infectious Diseases Apr 2008In 2004, the raccoon rabies virus variant emerged in Ohio beyond an area where oral rabies vaccine had been distributed to prevent westward spread of this variant. Our...
In 2004, the raccoon rabies virus variant emerged in Ohio beyond an area where oral rabies vaccine had been distributed to prevent westward spread of this variant. Our genetic investigation indicates that this outbreak may have begun several years before 2004 and may have originated within the vaccination zone.
Topics: Animals; Bayes Theorem; Brain; Likelihood Functions; Ohio; Phylogeny; RNA, Viral; Rabies; Rabies virus; Raccoons
PubMed: 18394286
DOI: 10.3201/eid1404.070972 -
Acta Tropica Jul 2020Rabies is one of the most dreadful diseases and a major viral zoonosis which has been shown to cause an almost 100% fatality rate in infected victims. It is...
Rabies is one of the most dreadful diseases and a major viral zoonosis which has been shown to cause an almost 100% fatality rate in infected victims. It is characterized by acute progressive encephalitis in mammals. This study determined the genotypic characteristics of rabies virus in dogs slaughtered for human consumption based on sequence of a fragment of nucleoprotein gene. Brain tissues were collected from 50 dogs slaughtered in Billiri and Kaltungo Local Government Areas of Gombe State, Nigeria. Direct fluorescent antibody test (DFAT) was used to screen for the presence of rabies virus antigen. Viral RNA isolated from DFAT positive brain tissues were subjected to the reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) followed by sequencing of the amplicons. Maximum Likelihood (ML) was used to construct a phylogenetic tree for sequences obtained with 1000 bootstrap replicates. The DFAT detected rabies antigen in 3 (6%) of the 50 dog brain tissues, from which 1 (2%) was positive by RT-PCR. ML phylogeny approach of the nucleotide sequences inferred members as originating lyssavirus genus and dog species. Essentially, MK234794 in this study displayed 99.3% sequence similarity with other related rabies viruses in the Africa 2 cluster (Nigeria, Cameroon, Chad and Niger). Interestingly, MK234794 showed no cluster relation with the Africa 1a, 1b, 3 and Africa 4 clades, respectively. This indicates there is in-country and trans-boundary circulation of the rabies viruses with no co-circulation between the Africa lineages, especially as dogs are continuously being traded due to consumption of dog meat in West Africa. This finding has given additional insight into the molecular epidemiology of rabies virus in Nigeria, therefore providing more baseline information for future design of rabies control programs in the country.
Topics: Animals; Cross-Sectional Studies; Dog Diseases; Dogs; Genotype; Molecular Epidemiology; Phylogeny; Rabies; Rabies virus
PubMed: 32243880
DOI: 10.1016/j.actatropica.2020.105461 -
Emerging Infectious Diseases May 2016We genetically characterized 32 canine rabies viruses isolated in Mali during 2006-2013 and identified 3 subgroups that belonged to the Africa 2 lineage. We also...
We genetically characterized 32 canine rabies viruses isolated in Mali during 2006-2013 and identified 3 subgroups that belonged to the Africa 2 lineage. We also detected subgroup F rabies virus. This information should be useful for development of mass vaccination campaigns for dogs and eventual large-scale control programs in this country.
Topics: Animals; Dog Diseases; Dogs; Geography; Mali; Phylogeny; Phylogeography; Public Health Surveillance; RNA, Viral; Rabies; Rabies virus
PubMed: 27089307
DOI: 10.3201/eid2205.150470 -
BMC Veterinary Research Jun 2018Rabies is a severe epidemic in Guangxi province, China, with hundreds of deaths occurring each year. In the past six decades, rabies has emerged three times in Guangxi,...
BACKGROUND
Rabies is a severe epidemic in Guangxi province, China, with hundreds of deaths occurring each year. In the past six decades, rabies has emerged three times in Guangxi, and the province has reported the largest number of rabies cases in China. The domestic dog is the principal vector for rabies, and 95% of human cases are associated with transmission from dogs.
RESULTS
To understand the genetic relationship between street rabies virus (RABV) from Guangxi, genetic diversity analysis was performed using RABV isolates collected between 1999 and 2012. The N gene of 42 RABV isolates, and the P and M genes, as well as fragments of the 3' terminus (L) and the polymerase activity module of the L gene (L) of 36 RABV isolates were sequenced. In addition, whole genome sequencing was performed for 5 RABV isolates. There was evidence of topological discrepancy in the phylogenetic trees based on different genes of the RABV isolates. Amino acid variation of the deduced N protein exhibited different patterns to those obtained from the P and M proteins reported here, and the previously reported G protein (Tang H. et al., PLoS Negl Trop Dis, 8(10): e3114, 2014), and L and L. These RABV isolates were divided into three main branches against fixed strains.
CONCLUSION
RABV is prevalent in Guangxi province and strains collected over the last two decades belong mainly to three groups (I, II, III). These RABV isolates reveal genetic diversity. Individual RABV genes from Guangxi exhibit different evolutionary characteristics. The results will have benefits for continuing comprehensive rabies surveillance, prevention and control in China.
Topics: Amino Acids; Animals; Cattle; China; Dogs; Evolution, Molecular; Genetic Variation; Genome, Viral; Mice; Phylogeny; Rabies virus; Swine; Whole Genome Sequencing
PubMed: 29914504
DOI: 10.1186/s12917-018-1514-0 -
Reviews of Infectious Diseases 1988Comparative nucleotide and deduced amino acid sequence analyses of the RNA and proteins of several fixed rabies virus strains have allowed detailed characterization of... (Review)
Review
Comparative nucleotide and deduced amino acid sequence analyses of the RNA and proteins of several fixed rabies virus strains have allowed detailed characterization of structural-functional relations of individual virus components. Several unique features of rabies viruses have been deduced from the complete nucleotide sequences of four of the five genes and the four intergenic regions of the genome. The most extensively analyzed rabies virus gene has been that of the surface glycoprotein. Direct comparisons between the deduced amino acid sequences of glycoprotein variants have led to the location of specific sites on the glycoprotein that bind virus-neutralizing antibodies and to the identification of an epitope correlating with viral pathogenicity. Structural requirements for immunogenic activity within the glycoprotein have also been investigated. This article presents an overview of the molecular biology of rabies viruses and describes the current state of knowledge of immunobiologic characteristics of different rabies virus components.
Topics: Amino Acid Sequence; Animals; Base Sequence; Epitopes; Genes; Genes, Viral; Rabies virus; Viral Proteins
PubMed: 2462742
DOI: 10.1093/clinids/10.supplement_4.s771 -
Current Topics in Microbiology and... 1976
Review
Topics: Antigens, Viral; Lipids; Microscopy, Electron; Models, Structural; Molecular Biology; Morphogenesis; RNA, Viral; Rabies virus; Viral Proteins; Virus Replication
PubMed: 797532
DOI: 10.1007/978-3-642-66530-1_5 -
Proceedings of the National Academy of... Dec 2001We report a previously unrecognized complexity to the ecology of rabies in wildlife. Rabies-specific virus-neutralizing antibodies in spotted hyenas, the most numerous...
We report a previously unrecognized complexity to the ecology of rabies in wildlife. Rabies-specific virus-neutralizing antibodies in spotted hyenas, the most numerous large carnivore in the Serengeti ecosystem (Tanzania, East Africa), revealed a high frequency of exposure of 37.0% to rabies virus, and reverse transcriptase (RT) PCR demonstrated rabies RNA in 13.0% of hyenas. Despite this high frequency, exposure neither caused symptomatic rabies nor decreased survival among members of hyena social groups monitored for 9 to 13 years. Repeated, intermittent presence of virus in saliva of 45.5% of seropositive hyenas indicated a "carrier" state. Rabies isolates from Serengeti hyenas differed significantly (8.5% sequence divergence) from those isolated from other Serengeti carnivores, suggesting that at least two separate strains circulate within the Serengeti carnivore community. This finding is consistent with the fact that exposure in hyenas increased with age and social status, following a pattern predicted by intraspecific age and social-status-dependent oral and bite contact rates. High seroprevalence of rabies, low basic reproductive rate of the virus (R(0)) of 1.9, a carrier state, and the absence of symptomatic rabies in a carnivore in an ecosystem with multihost and multistrain maintenance has not been previously demonstrated for rabies. Because of the substantial differences between the hyena viral isolates and those from canids and viverrids in the Serengeti, it is unlikely that spotted hyenas were the source of rabies virus that killed several African wild dog packs in the Serengeti ecosystem in the 1990s.
Topics: Animals; Base Sequence; Brain; Carnivora; DNA Primers; Female; Male; Molecular Sequence Data; Phylogeny; Rabies; Rabies virus; Reverse Transcriptase Polymerase Chain Reaction; Virus Replication
PubMed: 11742089
DOI: 10.1073/pnas.261411898