A tortoise-infecting picornavirus expands the host range of the family Picornaviridae

While picornaviruses can cause diseases in many mammals, little is known of their host range for replication in non-mammalian vertebrates. Here, a picornavirus in liver and kidney tissues from diseased Sulawesi tortoises (Indotestudo forsteni) was genetically characterized. Tortoise rafivirus A (ToRaV-A, KJ415177) represents a potential new genus in the family Picornaviridae, for which we propose the name “Rafivirus”. Our finding confirms the susceptibility of reptiles to picornaviruses.
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Publication
Contributors
Ng T F F, Wellehan J F X, Coleman J K, Kondov N O, Deng X, Waltzek T B, Reuter G, Knowles N J, Delwart E
Year
2015
Journal
Archives of Virology
Volume
160
Issue
5
Pages
1319-1323
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