Abstract
Avipoxviruses have been characterized from many avian species. Two recent studies have reported avipoxvirus-like viruses with varying pathogenicity in reptiles. Avipoxviruses are considered to be restricted to avian hosts. However, reports of avipoxvirus-like viruses from reptiles such as the green sea turtle (Chelonia mydas) and crocodile tegu (Crocodilurus amazonicus) suggest that cross-species transmission, within avian species and beyond, may be possible. Here we report evidence for a possible host switching event with a fowlpox-like virus recovered from an endangered northern royal albatross (Diomodea sanfordi)—a species of Procellariiformes, unrelated to Galliformes, not previously known to have been infected with fowlpox-like viruses. Complete genome sequencing of this virus, tentatively designated albatrosspox virus 2 (ALPV2), contained many fowlpox virus-like genes, but also 63 unique genes that are not reported in any other poxvirus. The ALPV2 genome contained 296 predicted genes homologous to different avipoxviruses, 260 of which were homologous to an American strain of fowlpox virus (FWPV). Subsequent phylogenetic analyses indicate that ALPV2 likely originated from a fowlpox virus-like progenitor. These findings highlight the importance of host-switching events where viruses cross species barriers with the risk of disease in close and distantly related host populations.
Highlights
Published: 1 February 2022Over the past several decades, marine bird populations have been decreasing globally [1]with the sustainability of the albatrosses and large petrels (Macronectes and Procellaria spp.) being under significant threat [2,3,4]
The Albatrosspox virus 2 (ALPV2) genome encompassed a large central coding region surrounded by two matching inverted terminal repeat (ITR) regions, constituting 7781 bp each similar to other characterized avipoxviruses [30,31,32,41,45,51]
The ALPV2 genome showed much lower nucleotide identity (48.8%) with the only other reported albatrosspox virus (ALPV), which had been collected in March 1997 from a northern royal albatross on the Otago Peninsula, New Zealand [29]
Summary
Published: 1 February 2022Over the past several decades, marine bird populations have been decreasing globally [1]with the sustainability of the albatrosses (family Diomedeidae) and large petrels (Macronectes and Procellaria spp.) being under significant threat [2,3,4]. One of the world’s largest seabirds, the northern royal albatross (Diomedea sanfordi) is categorized as an “endangered” species under the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) Red List and is classified as Category B for management urgency [5]. Breeding colonies are confined to the Chatham Islands and Taiaroa Head on the Otago Peninsula, Dunedin, New Zealand. The overall breeding population in the Chatham Islands colonies (99% of the total) is anticipated at about 6500–7000 pairs, which equates to a total population of approximately 17,000 adults [6]. Degradation or destruction of nesting grounds, storms and flooding, pollution of the marine environment, and ingestion of plastics are additional factors contributing to population. Population Status and Threats to Albatrosses and Giant Petrels Listed as Threatened under the Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation. Available online: https://www.environment.gov.au/resource/background-paper-population-status-and-threatsalbatrosses-and-giant-petrels-listed (accessed on 29 January 2021).
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