Coronaviruses in bats from Mexico.
Bats are reservoirs for a wide range of human pathogens including Nipah, Hendra, rabies, Ebola, Marburg and severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus (CoV). The recent implication of a novel beta (β)-CoV as the cause of fatal respiratory disease in the Middle East emphasizes the importance of surveillance for CoVs that have potential to move from bats into the human population. In a screen of 606 bats from 42 different species in Campeche, Chiapas and Mexico City we identified 13 distinct CoVs. Nine were alpha (α)-CoVs; four were β-CoVs. Twelve were novel. Analyses of these viruses in the context of their hosts and ecological habitat indicated that host species is a strong selective driver in CoV evolution, even in allopatric populations separated by significant geographical distance; and that a single species/genus of bat can contain multiple CoVs. A β-CoV with 96.5 % amino acid identity to the β-CoV associated with human disease in the Middle East was found in a Nyctinomops laticaudatus bat, suggesting that efforts to identify the viral reservoir should include surveillance of the bat families Molossidae/Vespertilionidae, or the closely related Nycteridae/Emballonuridae. While it is important to investigate unknown viral diversity in bats, it is also important to remember that the majority of viruses they carry will not pose any clinical risk, and bats should not be stigmatized ubiquitously as significant threats to public health.
EcoHealth Alliance, 460 West 34th Street, NY, USA.|Center for Infection and Immunity, Mailman School of Public Health, Columbia University, 722 West 168th Street, NY, USA.
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Anthony
Facultad de Medicina Veterinaria y Zootecnia, Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México, Ciudad Universitaria, 04510, México D.F. Mexico.
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Ojeda-Flores
Facultad de Medicina Veterinaria y Zootecnia, Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México, Ciudad Universitaria, 04510, México D.F. Mexico.
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Rico-Chávez
Center for Infection and Immunity, Mailman School of Public Health, Columbia University, 722 West 168th Street, NY, USA.
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Navarrete-Macias
EcoHealth Alliance, 460 West 34th Street, NY, USA.
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Zambrana-Torrelio
EcoHealth Alliance, 460 West 34th Street, NY, USA.
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Rostal
EcoHealth Alliance, 460 West 34th Street, NY, USA.
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Epstein
EcoHealth Alliance, 460 West 34th Street, NY, USA.
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Tipps
EcoHealth Alliance, 460 West 34th Street, NY, USA.|Center for Infection and Immunity, Mailman School of Public Health, Columbia University, 722 West 168th Street, NY, USA.
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Liang
EcoHealth Alliance, 460 West 34th Street, NY, USA.|Center for Infection and Immunity, Mailman School of Public Health, Columbia University, 722 West 168th Street, NY, USA.
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Sanchez-Leon
Facultad de Medicina Veterinaria y Zootecnia, Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México, Ciudad Universitaria, 04510, México D.F. Mexico.
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Sotomayor-Bonilla
George Mason University, 1500 Remount Road, Front Royal, Virginia, USA.
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Aguirre
Facultad de Medicina Veterinaria y Zootecnia, Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México, Ciudad Universitaria, 04510, México D.F. Mexico.
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Ávila-Flores
Instituto de Ecología, Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México, Ap. Postal 70-275, 04510, México, D.F. Mexico.
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Medellín
One Health Institute, School of Veterinary Medicine, One Shields Ave, University of California Davis, California USA.
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Goldstein
Facultad de Medicina Veterinaria y Zootecnia, Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México, Ciudad Universitaria, 04510, México D.F. Mexico.
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Suzán
EcoHealth Alliance, 460 West 34th Street, NY, USA.
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Daszak
Center for Infection and Immunity, Mailman School of Public Health, Columbia University, 722 West 168th Street, NY, USA.
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Lipkin
D000818:Animals; D001483:Base Sequence; D002685:Chiroptera / Q000821:virology*; D017934:Coronavirus / Q000145:classification / Q000235:genetics / Q000302:isolation & purification*; D018352:Coronavirus Infections / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000635:transmission / Q000662:veterinary* / Q000821:virology; D018076:DNA, Complementary / Q000737:chemistry / Q000235:genetics; D004197:Disease Reservoirs; D017753:Ecosystem; D014644:Genetic Variation; D006801:Humans; D008800:Mexico / Q000453:epidemiology; D008969:Molecular Sequence Data; D010802:Phylogeny; D011634:Public Health; D012367:RNA, Viral / Q000235:genetics; D017422:Sequence Analysis, DNA; D015047:Zoonoses
D018076:DNA, Complementary; D012367:RNA, Viral