tetano
Editor, Senior Moderator
Transbound Emerg Dis
. 2020 May 30.
doi: 10.1111/tbed.13653. Online ahead of print.
Long-term Surveillance of Bat Coronaviruses in Korea: Diversity and Distribution Pattern
Van Thi Lo[SUP] 1 2 [/SUP], Sun-Woo Yoon[SUP] 1 2 [/SUP], Ji Yeong Noh[SUP] 3 [/SUP], Youngji Kim[SUP] 1 [/SUP], Yong Gun Choi[SUP] 4 [/SUP], Dae Gwin Jeong[SUP] 1 2 [/SUP], Hye Kwon Kim[SUP] 3 [/SUP]
Affiliations
Abstract
Bats harbor diverse coronaviruses (CoVs), some of which are associated with zoonotic infections, as well as interspecies transmission. In this study, a total of 512 bat fecal samples from the bat habitats at different geographical locations in South Korea were investigated between 2016 and 2019. Seventy-eight samples were positive for coronaviruses (15.2%), comprising 68 alphacoronaviruses (13.3%) and 10 betacoronaviruses (2.0%). The positive rates tended to increase during the awakening-(April) period. Notably, betacoronaviruses were only found in the site where Rhinolophus ferrumequinum was the major species of bats, and were related to SARS- and MERS-related CoVs identified in China and South Korea, respectively. No betacoronaviruses were closely related to SARS-CoV-2 in this study. Alphacoronaviruses were detected in the sites where Hypsugo alaschanicus, Miniopterus fuliginosus, Miniopterus schreibersii, Rhinolophus ferrumequinum, Myotis bombinus, Myotis macrodactylus, and Myotis petax were found to be the major bat species. Furthermore, alphacoronaviruses had higher genetic diversity than betacoronaviruses, and had a wider distribution in Korea. Considering that different bat species are co-roosting in crowded conditions in the same habitat, the diverse coronaviruses in Korean bats are likely to undergo cross-species transmission events due to the richness in host species. Therefore, continuous monitoring should be performed, especially at the awakening time of the hibernating bats in the habitats where diverse bat species co-roost, to better understand the evolution of coronaviruses in bats.
Keywords: Korea; alphacoronavirus; bats; coronavirus; diversity; host sharing.
. 2020 May 30.
doi: 10.1111/tbed.13653. Online ahead of print.
Long-term Surveillance of Bat Coronaviruses in Korea: Diversity and Distribution Pattern
Van Thi Lo[SUP] 1 2 [/SUP], Sun-Woo Yoon[SUP] 1 2 [/SUP], Ji Yeong Noh[SUP] 3 [/SUP], Youngji Kim[SUP] 1 [/SUP], Yong Gun Choi[SUP] 4 [/SUP], Dae Gwin Jeong[SUP] 1 2 [/SUP], Hye Kwon Kim[SUP] 3 [/SUP]
Affiliations
- PMID: 32473082
- DOI: 10.1111/tbed.13653
Abstract
Bats harbor diverse coronaviruses (CoVs), some of which are associated with zoonotic infections, as well as interspecies transmission. In this study, a total of 512 bat fecal samples from the bat habitats at different geographical locations in South Korea were investigated between 2016 and 2019. Seventy-eight samples were positive for coronaviruses (15.2%), comprising 68 alphacoronaviruses (13.3%) and 10 betacoronaviruses (2.0%). The positive rates tended to increase during the awakening-(April) period. Notably, betacoronaviruses were only found in the site where Rhinolophus ferrumequinum was the major species of bats, and were related to SARS- and MERS-related CoVs identified in China and South Korea, respectively. No betacoronaviruses were closely related to SARS-CoV-2 in this study. Alphacoronaviruses were detected in the sites where Hypsugo alaschanicus, Miniopterus fuliginosus, Miniopterus schreibersii, Rhinolophus ferrumequinum, Myotis bombinus, Myotis macrodactylus, and Myotis petax were found to be the major bat species. Furthermore, alphacoronaviruses had higher genetic diversity than betacoronaviruses, and had a wider distribution in Korea. Considering that different bat species are co-roosting in crowded conditions in the same habitat, the diverse coronaviruses in Korean bats are likely to undergo cross-species transmission events due to the richness in host species. Therefore, continuous monitoring should be performed, especially at the awakening time of the hibernating bats in the habitats where diverse bat species co-roost, to better understand the evolution of coronaviruses in bats.
Keywords: Korea; alphacoronavirus; bats; coronavirus; diversity; host sharing.