Novel relatives of Mecsek Mountains mammarenavirus (family Arenaviridae) in hedgehogs living in different sampling areas in Hungary
Abstract Mammarenaviruses (genus Mammarenavirus, family Arenaviridae) are rodent-borne zoonotic viruses consisting of 52 viral species, including ten that are pathogenic to humans. Currently, only two endemic mammarenavirus species are known in Europe: the human pathogenic Mammarenavirus choriomenin...
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Nature Portfolio
2025-01-01
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| author | Károly Takáts Péter Pankovics Benigna Balázs Ákos Boros Róbert Mátics Gábor Reuter |
| author_facet | Károly Takáts Péter Pankovics Benigna Balázs Ákos Boros Róbert Mátics Gábor Reuter |
| author_sort | Károly Takáts |
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| description | Abstract Mammarenaviruses (genus Mammarenavirus, family Arenaviridae) are rodent-borne zoonotic viruses consisting of 52 viral species, including ten that are pathogenic to humans. Currently, only two endemic mammarenavirus species are known in Europe: the human pathogenic Mammarenavirus choriomeningitidis (LCMV) and the recently discovered hedgehog-origin Mammarenavirus mecsekense (MEMV). In this study, 59 faecal specimens from Northern white-breasted hedgehogs (Erinaceus roumanicus) from different geographic regions in Hungary were investigated for mammarenavirus presence and complete genome characterization using newly designed screening primers by RT-semi-nested PCR and sequencing methods. Five (8.5%) of the 59 samples tested positive for mammarenavirus RNA (ER8, ER15, ER27, ER33, and ER39, GenBank accession numbers PQ441959-PQ441968). The L- and S-segments of these strains showed 66–93% and 73–92% nt identity to the closest known mammarenavirus, MEMV, respectively. The NP protein exhibited 86–97% aa sequence identity compared to the corresponding protein of MEMV. Notably, the S-segment intergenic region (S-IGR) of strains ER8, ER15, ER27 and ER33 exceeded the average nt length among known mammarenaviruses and contained two, highly similar stem-loop structures with conserved self-complementary nucleotide motifs. Based on the sequence- and phylogenetic analysis these strains (ER8, ER15, ER27 and ER33) potentially represent a novel mammarenavirus species, tentatively named Pannonia mammarenavirus (PANV). |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-367947870ebf4e55add7f6443b9358af |
| institution | Kabale University |
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| language | English |
| publishDate | 2025-01-01 |
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| spelling | doaj-art-367947870ebf4e55add7f6443b9358af2025-01-26T12:27:46ZengNature PortfolioScientific Reports2045-23222025-01-0115111010.1038/s41598-025-87108-2Novel relatives of Mecsek Mountains mammarenavirus (family Arenaviridae) in hedgehogs living in different sampling areas in HungaryKároly Takáts0Péter Pankovics1Benigna Balázs2Ákos Boros3Róbert Mátics4Gábor Reuter5Department of Medical Microbiology and Immunology, Medical School, University of PécsDepartment of Medical Microbiology and Immunology, Medical School, University of PécsDepartment of Medical Microbiology and Immunology, Medical School, University of PécsDepartment of Medical Microbiology and Immunology, Medical School, University of PécsHungarian Nature Research SocietyDepartment of Medical Microbiology and Immunology, Medical School, University of PécsAbstract Mammarenaviruses (genus Mammarenavirus, family Arenaviridae) are rodent-borne zoonotic viruses consisting of 52 viral species, including ten that are pathogenic to humans. Currently, only two endemic mammarenavirus species are known in Europe: the human pathogenic Mammarenavirus choriomeningitidis (LCMV) and the recently discovered hedgehog-origin Mammarenavirus mecsekense (MEMV). In this study, 59 faecal specimens from Northern white-breasted hedgehogs (Erinaceus roumanicus) from different geographic regions in Hungary were investigated for mammarenavirus presence and complete genome characterization using newly designed screening primers by RT-semi-nested PCR and sequencing methods. Five (8.5%) of the 59 samples tested positive for mammarenavirus RNA (ER8, ER15, ER27, ER33, and ER39, GenBank accession numbers PQ441959-PQ441968). The L- and S-segments of these strains showed 66–93% and 73–92% nt identity to the closest known mammarenavirus, MEMV, respectively. The NP protein exhibited 86–97% aa sequence identity compared to the corresponding protein of MEMV. Notably, the S-segment intergenic region (S-IGR) of strains ER8, ER15, ER27 and ER33 exceeded the average nt length among known mammarenaviruses and contained two, highly similar stem-loop structures with conserved self-complementary nucleotide motifs. Based on the sequence- and phylogenetic analysis these strains (ER8, ER15, ER27 and ER33) potentially represent a novel mammarenavirus species, tentatively named Pannonia mammarenavirus (PANV).https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-025-87108-2ArenavirusMammarenavirusArenaviridaeMecsek Mountains virusPannonia mammarenavirusHedgehog |
| spellingShingle | Károly Takáts Péter Pankovics Benigna Balázs Ákos Boros Róbert Mátics Gábor Reuter Novel relatives of Mecsek Mountains mammarenavirus (family Arenaviridae) in hedgehogs living in different sampling areas in Hungary Scientific Reports Arenavirus Mammarenavirus Arenaviridae Mecsek Mountains virus Pannonia mammarenavirus Hedgehog |
| title | Novel relatives of Mecsek Mountains mammarenavirus (family Arenaviridae) in hedgehogs living in different sampling areas in Hungary |
| title_full | Novel relatives of Mecsek Mountains mammarenavirus (family Arenaviridae) in hedgehogs living in different sampling areas in Hungary |
| title_fullStr | Novel relatives of Mecsek Mountains mammarenavirus (family Arenaviridae) in hedgehogs living in different sampling areas in Hungary |
| title_full_unstemmed | Novel relatives of Mecsek Mountains mammarenavirus (family Arenaviridae) in hedgehogs living in different sampling areas in Hungary |
| title_short | Novel relatives of Mecsek Mountains mammarenavirus (family Arenaviridae) in hedgehogs living in different sampling areas in Hungary |
| title_sort | novel relatives of mecsek mountains mammarenavirus family arenaviridae in hedgehogs living in different sampling areas in hungary |
| topic | Arenavirus Mammarenavirus Arenaviridae Mecsek Mountains virus Pannonia mammarenavirus Hedgehog |
| url | https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-025-87108-2 |
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