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Updated: Sep 30, 2025

Combining Analysis of DNA in a Crude Virion Extraction with the Analysis of RNA from Infected Leaves to Discover New Virus Genomes
Published on: July 27, 2018
Identification and molecular characterization of highly divergent RNA viruses in cattle, Uganda
Stephen Balinandi1, Juliette Hayer2, Harindranath Cholleti3
1Uganda Virus Research Institute, Entebbe, Uganda; College of Veterinary Medicine, Animal Resources and Biosecurity, Makerere University, P.O. Box 34153, Kampala, Uganda.
Abstract:
The risk for the emergence of novel viral zoonotic diseases in animals and humans in Uganda is high given its geographical location with high biodiversity. We aimed to identify and characterize viruses in 175 blood samples from cattle selected in Uganda using molecular approaches. We identified 8 viral species belonging to 4 families (Flaviviridae, Peribunyaviridae, Reoviridae and Rhabdoviridae) and 6 genera (Hepacivirus, Pestivirus, Orthobunyavirus, Coltivirus, Dinovernavirus and Ephemerovirus). Four viruses were highly divergent and tetantively named Zikole virus (Family: Flaviviridae), Zeboroti virus (Family: Reoviridae), Zebtine virus (Family: Rhabdoviridae) and Kokolu virus (Family: Rhabdoviridae). In addition, Bovine Hepacivirus, Obodhiang virus, Aedes pseudoscutellaris reovirus and Schmallenberg virus were identified for the first time in Ugandan cattle. We report 8 viral species belonging to 4 viral families including divergent ones in the blood of cattle in Uganda. Hence, cattle may be reservoir hosts for likely emergence of novel viruses with pathogenic potential to cause zoonotic diseases in different species with serious public health implications.
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