[The taxonomy of the Baku virus (BAKV; Reoviridae, Orbivirus) isolated from the birds obligate parasites Argasidae ticks in Azerbaijan, Turkmenistan, and Uzbekistan].

The Baku virus (BAKV) was originally isolated from the ticks Ornithodoros capensis Neumann, 1901 (Acari: Argasidae) collected from the seagull (Larus argentatus) seating nests on the islands of the Baku archipelago, the Caspian sea. BAKV was assigned to Kemerovo group (KEMV) (Orbivirus, Reoviridae). The BAKV was frequently isolated from the ticks O. coniceps Canestrini, 1980, collected from L. argentatus and tern (Sterna hirundo) nests in Turkmenia and pigeon (Columba livia neglecta) nests in Uzbekistan. In this work, the genome of the BAKV was sequenced using the next-generation sequencing technology. The BAKV Pol protein has 48.6% identity level with the viruses of the Great Island Virus group and at average 41% with non-tick orbiviruses. The BAKV T2 protein level identity with the orbiviruses ranges from 23.7% to 64.8%. The maximum identity level of the T2 protein (64.8%) is observed for the tick-borne viruses of the GIV (KEMV) group. According to the conducted molecular-genetic and phylogenetic analysis, the BAKV is a novel species of the genus Orbivirus. It forms a phylogenetic group distinctly related to the GIV group.