title: Analysis of the long control region of bovine papillomavirus type 1 associated with sarcoids in equine hosts indicates multiple cross-species transmission events and phylogeographical structure.
abstract: Papillomaviruses are a family of slowly evolving DNA viruses and their evolution is commonly linked to that of their host species. However, whilst bovine papillomavirus-1 (BPV-1) primarily causes warts in its natural host, the cow, it can also cause locally aggressive and invasive skin tumours in equids, known as sarcoids, and thus provides a rare contemporary example of cross-species transmission of a papillomavirus. Here, we describe the first phylogenetic analysis of BPV-1 in equine sarcoids to our knowledge, allowing us to explore the evolutionary history of BPV-1 and investigate its cross-species association with equids. A phylogenetic analysis of the BPV-1 transcriptional promoter region (the long control region or LCR) was conducted on 15 bovine and 116 equine samples from four continents. Incorporating previous estimates for evolutionary rates in papillomavirus implied that the genetic diversity in the LCR variants was ancient and predated domestication of both equids and cattle. The phylogeny demonstrated geographical segregation into an ancestral group (African, South American and Australian samples), and a more recently derived, largely European clade. Whilst our data are consistent with BPV-1 originating in cattle, we found evidence of multiple, probably relatively recent, cross-species transmission events into horses. We also demonstrated the high prevalence of one particular sequence variant (variant 20), and suggest this may indicate that this variant shows a fitness advantage in equids. Although strong host specificity remains the norm in papillomaviruses, our results demonstrate that exceptions to this rule exist and can become epidemiologically relevant.
authors.affiliation: Boyd Orr Centre for Population and Ecosystem Health, Institute of Biodiversity, Animal Health and Comparative Medicine, College of Medical Veterinary and Life Sciences, University of Glasgow, Glasgow, UK.
authors.forename: Hannah
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Trewby
authors.affiliation: Addis Ababa University, College of Veterinary Medicine and Agriculture, Ethiopia.
authors.forename: Gizachew
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Ayele
authors.affiliation: Department of Veterinary Medicine and Animal Productions, University of Naples Federico II, Italy.
authors.forename: Giuseppe
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Borzacchiello
authors.affiliation: Research Oncology Group, University of Veterinary Medicine, Veterinaerplatz 1, 1210 Vienna, Austria.
authors.forename: Sabine
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Brandt
authors.affiliation: School of Veterinary Medicine, University of Glasgow, Glasgow, UK.
authors.forename: M Saveria
authors.initials: MS
authors.lastname: Campo
authors.affiliation: Centro de Sanidade Animal, Instituto Biológico, Brazil.
authors.forename: Claudia
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Del Fava
authors.affiliation: University of Pretoria, South Africa.
authors.forename: Johan
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Marais
authors.affiliation: Department of Veterinary Medicine, University of Perugia, Perugia, Italy.
authors.forename: Leonardo
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Leonardi
authors.affiliation: NSW Department of Primary Industries, UNE, Armidale, NSW, Australia University of New England, Australia.
authors.forename: Barbara
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Vanselow
authors.affiliation: MRC-University of Glasgow Centre for Virus Research, Institute of Infection, Immunity and Inflammation, College of Medical Veterinary and Life Sciences, University of Glasgow, Glasgow, UK.|Boyd Orr Centre for Population and Ecosystem Health, Institute of Biodiversity, Animal Health and Comparative Medicine, College of Medical Veterinary and Life Sciences, University of Glasgow, Glasgow, UK.
authors.forename: Roman
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Biek
authors.affiliation: MRC-University of Glasgow Centre for Virus Research, Institute of Infection, Immunity and Inflammation, College of Medical Veterinary and Life Sciences, University of Glasgow, Glasgow, UK.
authors.forename: Lubna
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Nasir
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D001483:Base Sequence; D052688:Bovine papillomavirus 1 / Q000302:isolation & purification*; D002417:Cattle; D004279:DNA, Viral / Q000235:genetics; D005260:Female; D015967:Gene Expression Regulation, Viral; D014644:Genetic Variation; D006734:Horse Diseases / Q000473:pathology / Q000821:virology*; D006736:Horses; D019901:Locus Control Region; D008297:Male; D008969:Molecular Sequence Data; D030361:Papillomavirus Infections / Q000662:veterinary* / Q000821:virology; D010802:Phylogeny; D058974:Phylogeography; D012878:Skin Neoplasms / Q000662:veterinary* / Q000821:virology; D013045:Species Specificity; D014412:Tumor Virus Infections / Q000662:veterinary* / Q000821:virology; D014764:Viral Proteins / Q000235:genetics
chemical_list: D004279:DNA, Viral; D014764:Viral Proteins