#Bombali Virus in Mops condylurus #Bats, #Guinea (Emerg Infect Dis., abstract)

[Source: US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), Emerging Infectious Diseases Journal, full page: (LINK). Abstract, edited.]

Volume 25, Number 9—September 2019 / Research Letter

Bombali Virus in Mops condylurus Bats, Guinea

Lyudmila S. Karan, Marat T. Makenov, Mikhail G. Korneev, Noumany Sacko, Sanaba Boumbaly, Sergey A. Yakovlev, Kerfalla Kourouma, Roman B. Bayandin, Anastasiya V. Gladysheva, Andrey V. Shipovalov, Irina A. Yurganova, Yana E. Grigorieva, Marina V. Fedorova, Svetlana A. Scherbakova, Vladimir V. Kutyrev, Alexander P. Agafonov, Renat A. Maksyutov, German A. Shipulin, Viktor V. Maleev, Mamadou Boiro, Vasiliy G. Akimkin, and Anna Y. Popova

Author affiliations: Central Research Institute of Epidemiology, Moscow, Russia (L.S. Karan, M.T. Makenov, Y.A. Grigorieva, M.V. Fedorova, V.V. Maleev, V.G. Akimkin); Russian Research Anti-Plague Institute, Saratov, Russia (M.G. Korneev, S.A. Yakovlev, S.A. Scherbakova, V.V. Kutyrev); International Center for Research of Tropical Infections in Guinea, N’Zerekore, Guinea (N. Sacko, S. Boumbaly); Research Institute of Applied Biology of Guinea, Kindia, Guinea (N. Sacko, S. Boumbaly, K. Kourouma, M. Boiro); State Research Center of Virology and Biotechnology VECTOR, Kol’tsovo, Russia (R.B. Bayandin, A.V. Gladysheva, A.V. Shipovalov, I.A. Yurganova, A.P. Agafonov, R.A. Maksyutov); Center of Strategical Planning and Biomedical Health Risks Management, Moscow (G.A. Shipulin); Federal Service for Surveillance on Consumer Rights Protection and Human Wellbeing, Moscow (A.Y. Popova)

 

Abstract

In 2018, a previously unknown Ebola virus, Bombali virus, was discovered in Sierra Leone. We describe detection of Bombali virus in Guinea. We found viral RNA in internal organs of 3 Angolan free-tailed bats (Mops condylurus) trapped in the city of N’Zerekore and in a nearby village.

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Keywords: Ebola; Ebola-Bombali; Bats; Guinea.

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Is the #Bombali virus #pathogenic in #humans? (Bioinformatics, abstract)

[Source: US National Library of Medicine, full page: (LINK). Abstract, edited.]

Bioinformatics. 2019 Apr 24. pii: btz267. doi: 10.1093/bioinformatics/btz267. [Epub ahead of print]

Is the Bombali virus pathogenic in humans?

Martell HJ1, Masterson SG1, McGreig JE1, Michaelis M1, Wass MN1.

Author information: 1 Industrial Biotechnology Centre and School of Biosciences, University of Kent, Canterbury, Kent, CT2 7NJ, UK.

 

Abstract

MOTIVATION:

The potential of the Bombali virus, a novel Ebolavirus, to cause disease in humans remains unknown. We have previously identified potential determinants of Ebolavirus pathogenicity in humans by analysing the amino acid positions that are differentially conserved (specificity determining positions; SDPs) between human pathogenic Ebolaviruses and the non-pathogenic Reston virus. Here, we include the many Ebolavirus genome sequences that have since become available into our analysis and investigate the amino acid sequence of the Bombali virus proteins at the SDPs that discriminate between human pathogenic and non-human pathogenic Ebolaviruses.

RESULTS:

The use of 1408 Ebolavirus genomes (196 in the original analysis) resulted in a set of 166 SDPs (reduced from 180), 146 (88%) of which were retained from the original analysis. This indicates the robustness of our approach and refines the set of SDPs that distinguish human pathogenic Ebolaviruses from Reston virus. At SDPs, Bombali virus shared the majority of amino acids with the human pathogenic Ebolaviruses (63.25%). However, for two SDPs in VP24 (M136L, R139S) that have been proposed to be critical for the lack of Reston virus human pathogenicity because they alter the VP24-karyopherin interaction, the Bombali virus amino acids match those of Reston virus. Thus, Bombali virus may not be pathogenic in humans. Supporting this, no Bombali virus-associated disease outbreaks have been reported, although Bombali virus was isolated from fruit bats cohabitating in close contact with humans, and anti-Ebolavirus antibodies that may indicate contact with Bombali virus have been detected in humans.

AVAILABILITY AND IMPLEMENTATION:

Data files are available from https://github.com/wasslab/EbolavirusSDPsBioinformatics2019.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Supplementary data are available at Bioinformatics online.

© The Author(s) 2019. Published by Oxford University Press. All rights reserved. For permissions, please e-mail: journals.permissions@oup.com.

PMID: 31093647 DOI: 10.1093/bioinformatics/btz267

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Keywords: Ebola; Ebola Bombali Virus.

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#Bombali #Ebola Virus in Mops condylurus #Bat, #Kenya (Emerg Infect Dis., abstract)

[Source: US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), Emerging Infectious Diseases Journal, full page: (LINK). Abstract, edited.]

Volume 25, Number 5—May 2019 / Dispatch

Bombali Ebola Virus in Mops condylurus Bat, Kenya

Kristian M. Forbes1  , Paul W. Webala, Anne J. Jääskeläinen, Samir Abdurahman, Joseph Ogola, Moses M. Masika, Ilkka Kivistö, Hussein Alburkat, Ilya Plyusnin, Lev Levanov, Essi M. Korhonen, Eili Huhtamo, Dufton Mwaengo, Teemu Smura, Ali Mirazimi, Omu Anzala, Olli Vapalahti, and Tarja Sironen

Author affiliations: University of Helsinki, Helsinki, Finland (K.M. Forbes, A.J. Jääskeläinen, I. Kivistö, H. Alburkat, I. Pljusnin, L. Levanov, E.M. Korhonen, E. Huhtamo, T. Smura, O. Vapalahti, T. Sironen); Maasai Mara University, Narok, Kenya (P.W. Webala); Helsinki University Hospital, Helsinki (A.J. Jääskeläinen, O. Vapalahti); Public Health Agency of Sweden, Stockholm, Sweden (S. Abdurahman, A. Mirazimi); University of Nairobi, Nairobi, Kenya (J. Ogola, M.M. Masika, D. Mwaengo, O. Anzala); Karolinska University Hospital, Stockholm (A. Mirazimi); National Veterinary Institute, Uppsala, Sweden (A. Mirazimi)

 

Abstract

Putatively named Bombali Ebola virus was identified in organs and excreta of an Angolan free-tailed bat (Mops condylurus) in Kenya. Complete genome analysis revealed 98% nucleotide sequence similarity to the prototype virus from Sierra Leone. No Ebola virus–specific RNA or antibodies were detected from febrile humans in the area who reported contact with bats.

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Keywords: Ebola; Ebola-Bombali Virus; Bats; Kenya.

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