Detection of Quaranjavirus-Like Sequences from Haemaphysalis hystricis Ticks Collected in Japan

Viruses belonging to the genus Quaranjavirus in the family Orthomyxoviridae are known as argasid tick-borne viruses. Some viruses in this genus or an unassigned quaranjavirus-like variant can infect humans, although little is known about their pathogenicity. During the surveillance of tick-borne viruses in ixodid ticks in Ehime Prefecture, Japan, novel quaranjavirus-like sequences were detected in 3 pooled samples of Haemaphysalis histricis nymphs. Phylogenetic analysis revealed that the detected viruses formed a cluster with quaranjaviruses and other related viruses. Specifically, the viruses were closely related to Zambezi tick virus 1 and Uumaja virus, which are quaranjavirus-like viruses recently discovered in ixodid ticks in Africa and Europe, respectively. These findings indicate that the viruses detected in this study were probably new members of the Quaranjavirus genus or a related group. The viruses were tentatively named "Ohshima virus" even though only limited sequences of their genomes were available. This is the first report on the detection of a quaranjavirus-like virus in the East Asian region. Further investigations are needed to discern its infectivity and pathogenicity against humans and other animals and to determine the potential risk of an emerging tick-borne viral disease.