A Novel Hepacivirus in Wild Rodents from South America.
William Marciel de Souza, Marcílio Jorge Fumagalli, Gilberto Sabino-Santos, Felipe Gonçalves Motta Maia, Sejal Modha, Márcio Roberto Teixeira Nunes, Pablo Ramiro Murcia, Luiz Tadeu Moraes Figueiredo
Author Information
William Marciel de Souza: Virology Research Center, Ribeirão Preto Medical School, University of São Paulo,14049-900 Ribeirão Preto, São Paulo, Brazil. wmarciel@usp.br. ORCID
Marcílio Jorge Fumagalli: Virology Research Center, Ribeirão Preto Medical School, University of São Paulo,14049-900 Ribeirão Preto, São Paulo, Brazil. marcilio_jorge@hotmail.com. ORCID
Gilberto Sabino-Santos: Virology Research Center, Ribeirão Preto Medical School, University of São Paulo,14049-900 Ribeirão Preto, São Paulo, Brazil. sabinogsj@usp.br. ORCID
Felipe Gonçalves Motta Maia: Virology Research Center, Ribeirão Preto Medical School, University of São Paulo,14049-900 Ribeirão Preto, São Paulo, Brazil. felipegmaia@gmail.com.
Sejal Modha: MRC-University of Glasgow Centre for Virus Research, Glasgow G61 1QH, UK. s.modha.1@research.gla.ac.uk.
Márcio Roberto Teixeira Nunes: Center for Technological Innovations, Evandro Chagas Institute, Ministry of Health, Ananindeua, 67030-000 Pará, Pará, Brazil. marcionunesbrasil@yahoo.com.br.
Pablo Ramiro Murcia: MRC-University of Glasgow Centre for Virus Research, Glasgow G61 1QH, UK. pablo.murcia@glasgow.ac.uk.
Luiz Tadeu Moraes Figueiredo: Virology Research Center, Ribeirão Preto Medical School, University of São Paulo,14049-900 Ribeirão Preto, São Paulo, Brazil. ltmfigue@fmrp.usp.br.
The genus comprises single-stranded positive-sense RNA viruses within the family . Several hepaciviruses have been identified in different mammals, including multiple rodent species in Africa, Asia, Europe, and North America. To date, no rodent hepacivirus has been identified in the South American continent. Here, we describe an unknown hepacivirus discovered during a metagenomic screen in , , , and from São Paulo State, Brazil. Molecular detection of this novel hepacivirus by RT-PCR showed a frequency of 11.11% (2/18) in . This is the first identification of hepavivirus in sigmondonine rodents and in rodents from South America. In sum, our results expand the host range, viral diversity, and geographical distribution of the genus.
