A novel bocavirus in canine liver

Area of Science:

• Virology
• Molecular Biology
• Canine Pathology

Background:

• Bocaviruses, single-stranded DNA viruses in the Parvoviridae family, can cause disease in mammals.
• Two canine bocavirus species, minute virus of canines (MVC) and Canine bocavirus (CBoV), are known, linked to neonatal issues and respiratory disease, respectively.

Purpose of the Study:

• To identify and characterize novel bocaviruses in dogs, particularly those associated with severe, complex diseases.
• To determine the genetic distinctiveness of a newly identified bocavirus from existing canine species.

Main Methods:

• Deep sequencing of viral particles enriched from the liver of a severely ill dog.
• Identification and characterization of major open reading frames (ORFs): NS1, NP1, and VP1.
• Comparative sequence analysis to determine amino acid (aa) identity with other bocaviruses.
• Inverse PCR to investigate viral genome forms in liver tissue.

Main Results:

• A novel bocavirus, named Canine bocavirus 3 (CnBoV3), was identified in the liver of a dog with severe hemorrhagic gastroenteritis, necrotizing vasculitis, granulomatous lymphadenitis, and anuric renal failure.
• CnBoV3's three major ORFs (NS1, NP1, VP1) showed less than 60% aa identity to other bocaviruses, meeting criteria for a new species.
• Inverse PCR confirmed the presence of concatemerized or circular forms of the CnBoV3 genome in the liver.

Conclusions:

• A genetically distinct bocavirus species, CnBoV3, was identified in a dog's liver, differing significantly from canine bocaviruses found in respiratory and fecal samples.
• The specific role of CnBoV3 in the severe, complex disease observed in the affected dog requires further investigation.