Longitudinal Secretion of Paramyxovirus RNA in the Urine of Straw-Coloured Fruit Bats (Eidolon helvum)

West African Centre for Cell Biology of Infectious Pathogens (WACCBIP), Department of Biochemistry, Cell and Molecular Biology, University of Ghana, Legon, Accra 00233, Ghana

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Department of Veterinary Medicine, University of Cambridge, Cambridge CB3 0ES, UK

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Academic Editors: Paola De Benedictis, Wanda Markotter and Stefania Leopardi

Viruses 2021, 13(8), 1654; https://doi.org/10.3390/v13081654

Received: 19 July 2021 / Revised: 16 August 2021 / Accepted: 17 August 2021 / Published: 20 August 2021

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Ecology of Virus Emergence from Wildilfe)

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Abstract

The straw-coloured fruit bat (Eidolon helvum) is widespread in sub-Saharan Africa and is widely hunted for bushmeat. It is known to harbour a range of paramyxoviruses, including rubuloviruses and henipaviruses, but the zoonotic potential of these is unknown. We previously found a diversity of paramyxoviruses within a small, captive colony of E. helvum after it had been closed to contact with other bats for 5 years. In this study, we used under-roost urine collection to further investigate the paramyxovirus diversity and ecology in this colony, which had been closed to the outside for 10 years at the time of sampling. By sampling urine weekly throughout an entire year, we investigated possible seasonal patterns of shedding of virus or viral RNA. Using a generic paramyxovirus L-gene PCR, we detected eight distinct paramyxovirus RNA sequences. Six distinct sequences were detected using a Henipavirus-specific PCR that targeted a different region of the L-gene. Sequence detection had a bi-annual pattern, with the greatest peak in July, although different RNA sequences appeared to have different shedding patterns. No significant associations were detected between sequence detection and birthing season, environmental temperature or humidity, and no signs of illness were detected in any of the bats in the colony during the period of sample collection. View Full-Text

Keywords: chiroptera; Pteropodidae; Henipavirus; Paramyxoviridae; Rubulavirus; persistence

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MDPI and ACS Style

Jolma, E.R.; Gibson, L.; Suu-Ire, R.D.; Fleischer, G.; Asumah, S.; Languon, S.; Restif, O.; Wood, J.L.N.; Cunningham, A.A. Longitudinal Secretion of Paramyxovirus RNA in the Urine of Straw-Coloured Fruit Bats (Eidolon helvum). Viruses 2021, 13, 1654. https://doi.org/10.3390/v13081654

AMA Style

Jolma ER, Gibson L, Suu-Ire RD, Fleischer G, Asumah S, Languon S, Restif O, Wood JLN, Cunningham AA. Longitudinal Secretion of Paramyxovirus RNA in the Urine of Straw-Coloured Fruit Bats (Eidolon helvum). Viruses. 2021; 13(8):1654. https://doi.org/10.3390/v13081654

Chicago/Turabian Style

Jolma, Elli R., Louise Gibson, Richard D. Suu-Ire, Grace Fleischer, Samuel Asumah, Sylvester Languon, Olivier Restif, James L.N. Wood, and Andrew A. Cunningham. 2021. "Longitudinal Secretion of Paramyxovirus RNA in the Urine of Straw-Coloured Fruit Bats (Eidolon helvum)" Viruses 13, no. 8: 1654. https://doi.org/10.3390/v13081654

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Longitudinal Secretion of Paramyxovirus RNA in the Urine of Straw-Coloured Fruit Bats (Eidolon helvum)

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