title: Phylogenetic reconstruction and polymorphism analysis of BK virus VP2 gene isolated from renal transplant recipients in China.
abstract: BK polyomavirus (BKV) is important pathogen for kidney transplant recipients, as it is frequently re-activated, leading to nephropathy. The aim of this study was to investigate the phylogenetic reconstruction and polymorphism of the VP2 gene in BKV isolated from Chinese kidney transplant recipients. Phylogenetic analysis was carried out in the VP2 region from 135 BKV-positive samples and 28 reference strains retrieved from GenBank. The unweighted pair-group method with arithmetic mean (UPGMA) grouped all strains into subtypes, but failed to subdivide strains into subgroups. Among the plasma and urine samples, all plasma (23/23) and 82 urine samples (82/95) were identified to contain subtype I; the other 10 urine samples contained subtype IV. A 86-bp fragment was identified as a highly conserved sequence. Following alignment with 36 published BKV sequences from China, 92 sites of polymorphism were identified, including 11 single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) prevalent in Chinese individuals and 30 SNPs that were specific to the two predominant subtypes I and IV. The limitations of the VP2 gene segment in subgrouping were confirmed by phylogenetic analysis. The conserved sequence and polymorphism identified in this study may be helpful in the detection and genotyping of BKV.
authors.affiliation: Zhejiang Provincial Top Key Discipline in Surgery, Wenzhou Key Laboratory of Surgery, Department of Surgery, The First Affiliated Hospital of Wenzhou Medical University, Wenzhou, Zhejiang 325000, P.R. China.
authors.forename: Zhang-Yang
authors.initials: ZY
authors.lastname: Wang
authors.affiliation: Zhejiang Provincial Top Key Discipline in Surgery, Wenzhou Key Laboratory of Surgery, Department of Surgery, The First Affiliated Hospital of Wenzhou Medical University, Wenzhou, Zhejiang 325000, P.R. China.
authors.forename: Wei-Long
authors.initials: WL
authors.lastname: Hong
authors.affiliation: Zhejiang Provincial Top Key Discipline in Surgery, Wenzhou Key Laboratory of Surgery, Department of Surgery, The First Affiliated Hospital of Wenzhou Medical University, Wenzhou, Zhejiang 325000, P.R. China.
authors.forename: Zhe-Hui
authors.initials: ZH
authors.lastname: Zhu
authors.affiliation: Zhejiang Provincial Top Key Discipline in Surgery, Wenzhou Key Laboratory of Surgery, Department of Surgery, The First Affiliated Hospital of Wenzhou Medical University, Wenzhou, Zhejiang 325000, P.R. China.
authors.forename: Yun-Hao
authors.initials: YH
authors.lastname: Chen
authors.affiliation: Transplantation Center, The First Affiliated Hospital of Wenzhou Medical University, Wenzhou, Zhejiang 325000, P.R. China.
authors.forename: Wen-LE
authors.initials: WL
authors.lastname: Ye
authors.affiliation: Transplantation Center, The First Affiliated Hospital of Wenzhou Medical University, Wenzhou, Zhejiang 325000, P.R. China.
authors.forename: Guang-Yu
authors.initials: GY
authors.lastname: Chu
authors.affiliation: Transplantation Center, The First Affiliated Hospital of Wenzhou Medical University, Wenzhou, Zhejiang 325000, P.R. China.
authors.forename: Jia-Lin
authors.initials: JL
authors.lastname: Li
authors.affiliation: Zhejiang Provincial Top Key Discipline in Surgery, Wenzhou Key Laboratory of Surgery, Department of Surgery, The First Affiliated Hospital of Wenzhou Medical University, Wenzhou, Zhejiang 325000, P.R. China.
authors.forename: Bi-Cheng
authors.initials: BC
authors.lastname: Chen
authors.affiliation: Transplantation Center, The First Affiliated Hospital of Wenzhou Medical University, Wenzhou, Zhejiang 325000, P.R. China.
authors.forename: Peng
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Xia
keywords: BK polyomavirus; Chinese; VP2 gene; genotypes; polymorphism