title: Molecular epidemiology of rabies epizootics in Colombia: evidence for human and dog rabies associated with bats.
abstract: Three urban rabies outbreaks have been reported in Colombia during the last two decades, one of these is occurring in the Caribbean Region (northern Colombia), while the other two occurred almost simultaneously in Arauca (eastern Colombia) and in the Central Region and ended in 1997. In order to derive phylogenetic relationships between rabies viruses isolated in these three areas, 902 nt cDNA fragments encoding the cytoplasmic domain of protein G and a fragment of protein L were obtained by RT-PCR. These amplicons contained the G-L intergenic region and were sequenced to draw phylogenetic trees. Phylogenetic analysis showed three distinct groups of viruses in the study sample. Colombian genetic variant I viruses were isolated in both Arauca and the Central Region. These viruses are apparently extinct in Colombia. Colombian genetic variant II viruses were isolated in the Caribbean Region and are still being transmitted in that area. The third group of viruses consists of viruses isolated from two insectivorous bats, three domestic dogs and a human. According to sequence analysis, the data here indicate that the isolates in this third group are bat rabies virus variants. This finding is the first that associates bats to rabies in Colombian dogs and humans, showing an unsuspected vector threatening animal and public health.
authors.affiliation: Departamento de Ciencias Básicas, Universidad de LaSalle, Bogotá, Colombia.|Laboratorio de Virología, Instituto Nacional de Salud (INS), Av. El Dorado Cra 50, Bogotá, Colombia.
authors.forename: Andrés
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Páez
authors.affiliation: Laboratorio de Virología, Universidad del Valle, Cali, Colombia.
authors.forename: Constanza
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Nũñez
authors.affiliation: Laboratorio de Virología, Instituto Nacional de Salud (INS), Av. El Dorado Cra 50, Bogotá, Colombia.
authors.forename: Clemencia
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: García
authors.affiliation: Laboratorio de Virología, Instituto Nacional de Salud (INS), Av. El Dorado Cra 50, Bogotá, Colombia.
authors.forename: Jorge
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Bóshell
mesh_terms: D000595:Amino Acid Sequence; D000818:Animals; D001483:Base Sequence; D002685:Chiroptera / Q000821:virology*; D003105:Colombia / Q000453:epidemiology; D012321:DNA-Directed RNA Polymerases / Q000235:genetics; D004196:Disease Outbreaks; D004283:Dog Diseases / Q000453:epidemiology*; D004285:Dogs / Q000821:virology*; D019204:GTP-Binding Proteins / Q000235:genetics; D006801:Humans; D017720:Molecular Epidemiology; D008969:Molecular Sequence Data; D010802:Phylogeny; D012367:RNA, Viral / Q000235:genetics; D011818:Rabies / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000662:veterinary*; D012209:Rhabdoviridae / Q000235:genetics* / Q000302:isolation & purification; D016415:Sequence Alignment; D014764:Viral Proteins / Q000235:genetics; D015047:Zoonoses / Q000821:virology
chemical_list: D012367:RNA, Viral; D014764:Viral Proteins; C097625:L protein, Rabies virus; D012321:DNA-Directed RNA Polymerases; D019204:GTP-Binding Proteins