The Distribution of Puumala orthohantavirus Genome Variants Correlates with the Regional Landscapes in the Trans-Kama Area of the Republic of Tatarstan.

Yuriy N Davidyuk,Richard A Urbanowicz,Ekaterina V Martynova,Sergey P Morzunov,Guzel S Isaeva,Emmanuel Kabwe,Albert A Rizvanov,Ruzilya K Ismagilova,Anton F Shamsutdinov,Tatiana A Savitskaya,Anna V Knyazeva,Vladimir A Trifonov,Svetlana F Khaiboullina

doi:10.3390/pathogens10091169

Abstract

In the European part of Russia, the highest number of hemorrhagic fever with renal syndrome (HFRS) cases are registered in the Volga Federal District (VFD), which includes the Republic of Tatarstan (RT). Puumala orthohantavirus (PUUV) is the main causative agent of HFRS identified in the RT. The goal of the current study is to analyze the genetic variations of the PUUV strains and possible presence of chimeric and reassortant variants among the PUUV strains circulating in bank vole populations in the Trans-Kama area of the RT. Complete S segment CDS as well as partial M and L segment coding nucleotide sequences were obtained from 40 PUUV-positive bank voles and used for the analysis. We found that all PUUV strains belonged to RUS genetic lineage and clustered in two subclades corresponding to the Western and Eastern Trans-Kama geographic areas. PUUV strains from Western Trans-Kama were related to the previously identified strain from Teteevo in the Pre-Kama area. It can be suggested that the PUUV strains were introduced to the Teteevo area as a result of the bank voles’ migration from Western Trans-Kama. It also appears that physical obstacles, including rivers, could be overcome by migrating rodents under favorable circumstances. Based on results of the comparative and phylogenetic analyses, we propose that bank vole distribution in the Trans-Kama area occurred upstream along the river valleys, and that watersheds could act as barriers for migrations. As a result, the diverged PUUV strains could be formed in closely located populations. In times of extensive bank vole population growth, happening every 3–4 years, some regions of watersheds may become open for contact between individual rodents from neighboring populations, leading to an exchange of the genetic material between divergent PUUV strains.

Highlights

Orthohantaviruses, which belong to the genus Orthohantavirus, family Hantaviridae, order Bunyavirales, are zoonotic pathogens circulating in small mammals in the Americas and Eurasia [1]
We showed that the Puumala orthohantavirus (PUUV) strains display significant genetic diversity even in closely located bank vole populations [19]
It was demonstrated that the genetic distance between these orthohantavirus genome variants did not always correlate with the geographic distance between their location, with some PUUV sequences being more closely related to sequences from distant regions

Summary

Introduction

Orthohantaviruses, which belong to the genus Orthohantavirus, family Hantaviridae, order Bunyavirales, are zoonotic pathogens circulating in small mammals in the Americas and Eurasia [1]. Orthohantaviruses are divided into two main groups, each associated with distinct clinical symptoms in human infections [2]. In the Americas, orthohantaviruses cause hantavirus pulmonary syndrome, whilst nephropathia epidemica (NE), a mild form of hemorrhagic fever with renal syndrome (HFRS), is documented in Eurasia [3]. Orthohantaviruses are endemic in Europe, representing a constant health care threat. Massive outbreaks of HFRS are reported in Fennoscandia, Central and Western Europe, as well as in Russia [4,5,6]. It is believed that the mode of orthohantaviruses transmission is by inhaling aerosolized excreta contaminated with virus released by infected rodents [10]

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