title: First characterization of viruses from freshwater snails of the genus Biomphalaria, the intermediate host of the parasite Schistosoma mansoni.
abstract: We report the genome sequence and organization of five viruses infecting snails of both Biomphalaria glabrata and Biomphalaria pfeifferi, which are vectors of the intestinal schistosomiasis. Four viruses presented a polyadenylated positive single strand RNA genome encoding one or two large open reading frames (ORFs) flanked by untranslated region. Conserved protein motifs typical of the picorna-like virus superfamily were identified in these viruses but they all presented different genome organization. Phylogenetic analysis confirmed their assignment to this superfamily. The partially characterized fifth virus presented sequence similarity for Totiviridae, a family of non-polyadenylated double-strand RNA viruses. Virus distribution and relative abundance between the five strains of Biomphalaria originating from different geographical areas was determined. Our results provide valuable information of new viruses from Biomphalaria and pave the way for future studies dedicated to their impact on snail fitness and Biomphalaria/Schistosoma interactions.
authors.affiliation: CNRS, IHPE UMR 5244, Univ. Perpignan Via Domitia, IFREMER, Univ. Montpellier, F-66860 Perpignan, France. Electronic address: richard.galinier@univ-perp.fr.
authors.forename: Richard
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Galinier
authors.affiliation: CNRS, IHPE UMR 5244, Univ. Perpignan Via Domitia, IFREMER, Univ. Montpellier, F-66860 Perpignan, France.
authors.forename: Guillaume
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Tetreau
authors.affiliation: CNRS, IHPE UMR 5244, Univ. Perpignan Via Domitia, IFREMER, Univ. Montpellier, F-66860 Perpignan, France.
authors.forename: Anaïs
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Portet
authors.affiliation: CNRS, IHPE UMR 5244, Univ. Perpignan Via Domitia, IFREMER, Univ. Montpellier, F-66860 Perpignan, France.
authors.forename: Silvain
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Pinaud
authors.affiliation: CNRS, IHPE UMR 5244, Univ. Perpignan Via Domitia, IFREMER, Univ. Montpellier, F-66860 Perpignan, France.
authors.forename: David
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Duval
authors.affiliation: CNRS, IHPE UMR 5244, Univ. Perpignan Via Domitia, IFREMER, Univ. Montpellier, F-66860 Perpignan, France.
authors.forename: Benjamin
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Gourbal
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D001483:Base Sequence; D001700:Biomphalaria / Q000469:parasitology*; D016678:Genome; D006790:Host-Parasite Interactions; D012550:Schistosoma mansoni / Q000235:genetics* / Q000302:isolation & purification*
keywords: Biomphalaria; Picorna-like virus; Schistosomiasis vector; Totiviridae,; Viral microbiota