Identification and characterization of two novel viruses in ocular infections in reindeer

PLoS One. 2013 Jul 16;8(7):e69711. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0069711. Print 2013.

Abstract

A thorough understanding of virus diversity in wildlife provides epidemiological baseline information about pathogens. In this study, eye swab samples were obtained from semi-domesticated reindeer (Rangifertarandus tarandus) in Norway during an outbreak of infectious eye disease, possibly a very early stage of infectious keratoconjunctivitis (IKC). Large scale molecular virus screening, based on host nucleic acid depletion, sequence-independent amplification and next-generation sequencing of partially purified viral nucleic acid, revealed the presence of a new papillomavirus in 2 out of 8 eye swab samples and a new betaherpesvirus in 3 out of 8 eye swab samples collected from animals with clinical signs and not in similar samples in 9 animals without clinical signs. Whether either virus was responsible for causing the clinical signs or in any respect was associated to the disease condition remains to be determined.

Publication types

  • Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

  • Animals
  • Eye Infections / virology*
  • Papillomaviridae / classification
  • Papillomaviridae / genetics*
  • Papillomaviridae / pathogenicity*
  • Phylogeny
  • Reindeer / virology*

Grants and funding

The research leading to these results has received funding from the Norwegian Reindeer Development Fund (RUF) and the European Community's Seventh Framework Programme (FP7/2007 - 2013) under the project "European Management Platform for Emerging and Re-emerging Infectious disease Entities" (EMPERIE) EC grant agreement number 223498. The funders had no role in study design, data collection and analysis, decision to publish, or preparation of the manuscript.