Genomic, Recombinational and Phylogenetic Characterization of Global Feline Herpesvirus 1 Isolates.

PubMed ID: 29605685

Author(s): Lewin AC, Kolb AW, McLellan GJ, Bentley E, Bernard KA, Newbury SP, Brandt CR. Genomic, recombinational and phylogenetic characterization of global feline herpesvirus 1 isolates. Virology. 2018 May;518:385-397. doi: 10.1016/j.virol.2018.03.018. Epub 2018 Mar 30. PMID 29605685

Journal: Virology, Volume 518, May 2018

Feline herpes virus type 1 (FHV-1) is widely considered to be the leading cause of ocular disease in cats and has been implicated in upper respiratory tract infections. Little, however is known about interstrain phylogenetic relationships, and details of the genomic structure. For the present study, twenty-six FHV-1 isolates from different cats in animal shelters were collected from eight separate locations in the USA, and the genomes sequenced. Genomic characterization of these isolates includied short sequence repeat (SSR) detection, with fewer SSRs detected, compared to herpes simplex viruses type 1 and 2. For phylogenetic and recombination analysis, 27 previously sequenced isolates of FHV-1 were combined with the 26 strains sequenced for the present study. The overall genomic interstrain genetic distance between all available isolates was 0.093%. Phylogenetic analysis identified four main FHV-1 clades primarily corresponding to geographical collection site. Recombination analysis suggested that interclade recombination has occurred.

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