Sequence diversity and evolution of a group of iflaviruses associated with ticks
Details
Publication Year 2021-04-19,Volume 166,Issue #7,Page 1843-1852
Journal Title
Archives of Virology
Abstract
We studied a group of tick-associated viruses with characteristics of members of the family Iflaviridae, a family of viruses frequently found in arthropods. Our aim was to gain insight into the evolutionary dynamics of this group of viruses, which may be linked to the biology of ticks. We explored assembled RNA-Seq data sets for different species of ticks. We identified members of five different iflavirus species, four of them novel, and discovered nine new genome sequences, including variants. Five variants represented a virus species associated with Ixodes ricinus. Unexpectedly, a sequence found in the Ixodes scapularis cell line ISE6 was nearly identical to the sequences of I. ricinus variants, suggesting a contamination of this cell line by I. ricinus material. Analysing patterns of substitutions between these variants, we detected a strong excess of synonymous mutations, suggesting evolution under strong positive selection. The phylogenies of the viruses and of their tick hosts were not congruent, suggesting recurrent host changes across tick genera during their evolution. Overall, our work constitutes a step in the understanding of the interactions between this family of viruses and ticks.
Publisher
Springer
Research Division(s)
Population Health And Immunity
PubMed ID
33870470
Open Access at Publisher's Site
https://doi.org/10.1007/s00705-021-05060-8
Terms of Use/Rights Notice
Refer to copyright notice on published article.


Creation Date: 2021-05-11 01:47:50
Last Modified: 2021-06-25 11:40:34
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