Detection and complete genome characteristics of Posavirus 1 from pigs in China

Porcine stool-associated RNA virus 1 (Posavirus 1) is a novel member of picornaviruses and first identified from fecal samples of 30-day-old pigs with diarrhea in USA in 2011. To evaluate the existence of Posavirus 1 in swine herds, 118 clinical samples from diarrheal pigs and 31 fecal swabs from healthy pigs were collected and detected by reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) using Posavirus 1-specific primers. Only five fecal samples from diarrheal pigs on two swine farms were positive for Posavirus 1. The complete genome sequences [excluding poly (A) tail] of two representative isolates SDQD-25 and HBTS-11 are determined and consist of 9840 and 9819 nucleotides in length, and encode one putative polyprotein of 3070 and 2952 amino acids, respectively. They share 90.3% homology with each other and 81.3-95.4% homologies with American Posavirus 1 isolates or strains at the nucleotide sequence level. The phylogenetic analysis based on the entire genomes of reference picornavirus strains or isolates showed SDQD-25, HBTS-11 cluster together with American Posavirus 1 isolates or strains, yet are clearly distant from the other picornaviruses. The complete genome sequences of Chinese Posavirus 1 isolates will enrich the information of Posavirus 1 sequence database and further expedite posavirus research on the genetic diversity, epidemiology, and evolution in China.