Complete genome sequence and biological characterizations of a novel goose paramyxovirus-SF02 isolated in China

A paramyxovirus designated as APMV-1 (NDV) isolate SF02 (abbre. as SF02) was recently isolated from goose in China. SF02 was identified as a member of Newcastle disease virus (NDV) genotype VII. NDV strains are generally pathogenic only for fowls, including chicken and pigeon, and not for waterfowls such as goose and duck, whereas SF02 is highly pathogenic for both fowls and waterfowls. In the present study the complete genome consisting of 15, 192 nucleotides of SF02 was sequenced. Genomes of SF02 and all known APMV-1, Strains contain 6 ORFs in the order of NP-P-M-F-HN-L, and that of SF02 had an extra 6 nts between NP and P genes. Moreover, an anti-sense ORF consisting of 549 nt at the 1960 to 1412 and deduced 182 amino acids was found in SF02. The SF02 genome shared 83% identity and its 6 ORFs 81.9-86.1% identities with the reference APMV-1 strains. The possible mechanism determining different host range and pathogenicity is discussed based on genetic analyses.