title: Complete genome analysis of a rabbit rotavirus causing gastroenteritis in a human infant.
abstract: Group A rotaviruses (RVA) are responsible for causing infantile diarrhea both in humans and animals. The molecular characteristics of lapine RVA strains are only studied to a limited extent and so far G3P[14] and G3P[22] were found to be the most common G/P-genotypes. During the 2012-2013 rotavirus season in Belgium, a G3P[14] RVA strain was isolated from stool collected from a two-year-old boy. We investigated whether RVA/Human-wt/BEL/BE5028/2012/G3P[14] is completely of lapine origin or the result of reassortment event(s). Phylogenetic analyses of all gene segments revealed the following genotype constellation: G3-P[14]-I2-R2-C2-M3-A9-N2-T6-E5-H3 and indicated that BE5028 probably represents a rabbit to human interspecies transmission able to cause disease in a human child. Interestingly, BE5028 showed a close evolutionary relationship to RVA/Human-wt/BEL/B4106/2000/G3P[14], another lapine-like strain isolated in a Belgian child in 2000. The phylogenetic analysis of the NSP3 segment suggests the introduction of a bovine(-like) NSP3 into the lapine RVA population in the past 12 years. Sequence analysis of NSP5 revealed a head-to-tail partial duplication, combined with two short insertions and a deletion, indicative of the continuous circulation of this RVA lineage within the rabbit population.
authors.affiliation: KU Leuven-University of Leuven, Department of Microbiology and Immunology, Laboratory for Clinical and Epidemiological Virology, Rega Institute for Medical Research, B-3000 Leuven, Belgium. m.b.bonica@gmail.com.
authors.forename: Melisa Berenice
authors.initials: MB
authors.lastname: Bonica
authors.affiliation: KU Leuven-University of Leuven, Department of Microbiology and Immunology, Laboratory for Clinical and Epidemiological Virology, Rega Institute for Medical Research, B-3000 Leuven, Belgium. mark.zeller@uzleuven.be.
authors.forename: Mark
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Zeller
authors.affiliation: KU Leuven-University of Leuven, Department of Microbiology and Immunology, Laboratory for Clinical and Epidemiological Virology, Rega Institute for Medical Research, B-3000 Leuven, Belgium. vanranstmarc@gmail.com.
authors.forename: Marc
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Van Ranst
authors.affiliation: KU Leuven-University of Leuven, Department of Microbiology and Immunology, Laboratory for Clinical and Epidemiological Virology, Rega Institute for Medical Research, B-3000 Leuven, Belgium. jelle.matthijnssens@uzleuven.be.
authors.forename: Jelle
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Matthijnssens
authors.affiliation: KU Leuven-University of Leuven, Department of Microbiology and Immunology, Laboratory for Clinical and Epidemiological Virology, Rega Institute for Medical Research, B-3000 Leuven, Belgium. elisabeth.heylen@uzleuven.be.
authors.forename: Elisabeth
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Heylen
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D001483:Base Sequence; D002675:Child, Preschool; D005759:Gastroenteritis / Q000821:virology*; D020440:Gene Duplication; D016679:Genome, Viral; D023281:Genomics; D005838:Genotype; D006801:Humans; D008969:Molecular Sequence Data; D010802:Phylogeny; D011817:Rabbits; D012401:Rotavirus / Q000235:genetics* / Q000302:isolation & purification; D012400:Rotavirus Infections / Q000635:transmission / Q000821:virology*; D017422:Sequence Analysis, DNA