| Title | Molecular genomic characterization of severe fever with thrombocytopenia syndrome virus isolates from South Korea |
|---|---|
| Author | Yu Jung Won1, Lae Hyung Kang1, Sung Geun Lee2, Seung Won Park3, Jae Ik Han4, and Soon Young Paik1* |
| Address | 1Department of Microbiology, College of Medicine, The Catholic University of Korea, Seoul 06591, Republic of Korea, 2Korea Zoonosis Research Institute, Chonbuk National University, Iksan 54596, Republic of Korea, 3Department of Biotechnology, Daegu Catholic University, Gyeongsan 38430, Republic of Korea, 4Laboratory of Wildlife Diseases, College of Veterinary Medicine, Chonbuk National University, Iksan 54596, Republic of Korea |
| Bibliography | Journal of Microbiology, 57(10),927–937, 2019, |
| DOI | 10.1007/s12275-019-9174-8 |
| Key Words | SFTS, SFTSV, whole-genome sequencing, Phlebovirus, South Korea, phylogeny |
| Abstract | Severe fever with thrombocytopenia syndrome (SFTS) is a tick-borne emerging infectious disease caused by the SFTS virus (SFTSV) and is a threat to public health due to its high fatality rate. However, details on tick-to-human transmission of SFTSV are limited. In this study, we determined the wholegenome sequence of a South Korean SFTSV strain (CUKJJ01), compared it to those of other recent human SFTSV isolates, and identified the genetic variations and relationships among the SFTSV strains. The genome of CUK-JJ01 was consistent with the genome of other members of the genus Phlebovirus, including the large (L), medium (M), and small (S) segments of 6368, 3378, and 1744 nucleotides, respectively. Based on amino acid sequences of the M and S segments, which are used to distinguish the six SFTSV genotypes, CUK-JJ01 was classified as genotype B. Segment analysis revealed that the L, M, and S segments were 97.49%, 97.18%, and 97.94% similar to those of KAJNH2/2013/ Korea, ZJZHSH-FDE/2012/China, and KADGH/2013/Korea, respectively. Currently, only few studies on SFTSV have been conducted in Korean population and most were limited to serological analysis. Although the present study has limitations in terms of number of sample analyzed, the findings may serve as basis to understand the transmission and spread of SFTSV, as well as for the development of diagnostic and detection methods for viral recombinants by comparing the whole genome sequence of SFTSV isolates from South Korea and that of foreign isolates. |