High-throughput sequencing exclusively identified a novel Torque teno virus genotype in serum of a patient with fatal fever

Torque teno virus(TTV) has been found to be prevalent world-wide in healthy populations and in patients with various diseases, but its etiological role has not yet been determined. Using high-throughput unbiased sequencing to screen for viruses in the serum of a patient with persistent high fever who died of suspected viral infection and prolonged weakness, we identified the complete genome sequence of a TTV(isolate Hebei-1). The genome of TTV-Hebei-1 is 3649 bp in length, encoding four putative open reading frames, and it has a G+C content of 49%. Genomic comparison and a BLASTN search revealed that the assembled genome of TTV-Hebei-1 represented a novel isolate, with a genome sequence that was highly heterologous to the sequences of other reported TTV strains. A phylogenetic tree constructed using the complete genome sequence showed that TTV-Hebei-1 and an uncharacterized Taiwan Residents strain, TW53A37, constitute a new TTV genotype. The patient was strongly suspected of carrying a viral infection and died eventually without any other possible causes being apparent. No virus other than the novel TTV was identified in his serum sample. Although a direct causal link between the novel TTV genotype infection and the patient's disease could not be confirmed, the findings suggest that surveillance of this novel TTV genotype is necessary and that its role in disease deserves to be explored.

Effects of Cultivation Method on Seed Yield and Quality of Bitter Gourd

This experiment was carried out to study the possibility of producing germinating seeds of bitter gourd(Momordica charamtia L.)in the climatic conditions of Europe.Seeds of Indian cultivar‘Nana’were sown in the greenhouse and produced transplants were planted on the field.The plants were cultivated in the field in 2 ways:tied to the sticks or creeping on the ground.During the vegetation,the ripen fruits with seeds were collected 6 times,and after extracting,they were germinated in the laboratory following the routine ISTA rules.The best transplants of bitter gourd were received within one month from the seeds emerging 51.8%.The transplant of bitter gourd had average height of7 cm,3-4 leaves,out of which the biggest had the width of 5 cm.Such transplants would grow into fruiting plants.When growing bitter gourd for seeds,the earliest fruits were harvested from the plants tied to the sticks.Moreover,the best seeds were harvested from 2/3 of early fruits.For the purpose of seed production,it is recommended to keep only 3-4 fruits per plant and remove other fruits.The produced seeds germinated from 8%to 24%.If the plants were tied to the sticks,their fruits ripened earlier.The used production way and time of harvest of fruits had no effect on the seed germination.The cultivation methods of bitter gourd plants had no effect on the chemical components of fruits.

Molecular characterization of an outbreak-involved Bacillus anthracis strain confirms the spillover of anthrax from West Africa

Background Anthrax,a zoonotic disease caused by the spore-forming bacterium Bacillus anthracis,remains a major global public health concern,especially in countries with limited resources.Sierra Leone,a West African country historically plagued by anthrax,has almost been out of report on this disease in recent decades.In this study,we described a large-scale anthrax outbreak affecting both animals and humans and attempted to characterize the path-ogenusingmoleculartechniques.Methods The causative agent of the animal outbreak in Port Loko District,Sierra Leone,between March and May 2022 was identified using the nanopore sequencing technique.A nationwide active surveillance was implemented from May 2022 to June 2023 to monitor the occurrence of anthrax-specific symptoms in humans.Suspected cases were subsequently verified using quantitative polymerase chain reaction.Full-genome sequencing was accomplished by combining long-read and short-read sequencing methods.Subsequent phylogenetic analysis was performed based on the full-chromosome single nucleotide polymorphisms.Results The outbreak in Port Loko District,Sierra Leone,led to the death of 233 animals between March 26th and May 16th,2022.We ruled out the initial suspicion of Anaplasma species and successfully identified B.anthracis as the causative agent of the outbreak.As a result of the government's prompt response,out of the 49 suspected human cases identifed during the one-year active surveillance,only 6 human cases tested positive,all within the frst month after the official declaration of the outbreak.The phylogenetic analysis indicated that the BaSL2022 isolate responsible for the outbreak was positioned in the A.Br.153 clade within the TransEuroAsian group of B.anthracis.Conclusions We successfully identifed a large-scale anthrax outbreak in Sierra Leone.The causative isolate of B.anthracis,BaSL2022,phylogenetically bridged other lineages in A.Br.153 clade and neighboring genetic groups,A.Br.144 and A.Br.148,eventually confirming the spillover of anthrax from West Africa.Given the wide dissemination of B.anthracis spores,it is highly advisable to effectively monitor the potential reoccurrence of anthrax outbreaks and to launch campaigns to improve public awareness regarding anthrax in Sierra Leone.

Conserved termini and adjacent variable region of Twortlikevirus Staphylococcus phages

Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus(MRSA) is an increasing cause of serious infection,both in the community and hospital settings. Despite sophisticated strategies and efforts, the antibiotic options for treating MRSA infection are narrowing because of the limited number of newly developed antimicrobials. Here, four newly-isolated MRSA-virulent phages, IME-SA1, IMESA2, IME-SA118 and IME-SA119, were sequenced and analyzed. Their genome termini were identified using our previously proposed "termini analysis theory". We provide evidence that remarkable conserved terminus sequences are found in IME-SA1/2/118/119, and, moreover, are widespread throughout Twortlikevirus Staphylococcus phage G1 and K species. Results also suggested that each phage of the two species has conserved 5′ terminus while the 3′ terminus is variable. More importantly, a variable region with a specific pattern was found to be present near the conserved terminus of Twortlikevirus S. phage G1 species. The clone with the longest variable region had variable terminus lengths in successive generations, while the clones with the shortest variable region and with the average length variable region maintained the same terminal length as themselves during successive generations. IME-SA1 bacterial infection experiments showed that the variation is not derived from adaptation of the phage to different host strains. This is the first study of the conserved terminus and variable region of Twortlikevirus S. phages.

Identification and genomic analysis of a novel member of Microviridae, IME-16, through high-throughput sequencing

Dear Editor,Bacteriophages predominate in the biosphere and outnumber their hosts by at least one order of magnitude(Srinivasiah et al.,2008).They have been used for over90 years as an alternative to antibiotics in Eastern Europe(Deresinski,2009).With the increasing emergence of antibiotic resistance,the therapeutic potential of bacteriophages is being reevaluated(Kutter et al.,2010).Until recently,phages possessing ds DNA genomes have

SUMOylation of RIG-I positively regulates the type I interferon signaling

Retinoic acid-inducible gene-I(RIG-I)functions as an intracellular pattern recognition receptor(PRR)that recognizes the 5'-triphosphate moiety of single-stranded RNA viruses to initiate the innate immune response.Previous studies have shown that Lys63-linked ubiquitylation is required for RIG-I activation and the downstream anti-viral type I interferon(IFN-I)induction.Herein we reported that,RIG-I was also modified by small ubiquitin-like modifier-1(SUMO-1).Functional analysis showed that RIG-I SUMOylation enhanced IFN-I production through increased ubiquitylation and the interaction with its downstream adaptor molecule Cardif.Our results therefore suggested that SUMOylation might serve as an additional regulatory tier for RIG-I activation and IFN-I signaling.

A novel mosquito-borne reassortant orbivirus isolated from Xishuangbanna,China

Dear Editor,The genus Orbivirus,within the family Reoviridae,includes 22 virus species(King et al.,2011).They are distributed globally,but are particularly prevalent in Europe,Asia,and Africa.In addition,they can be transmitted by ticks or other hematophagous insect vectors,including Culicoides,mosquitoes,and sandflies(Belaga-