Ng Daisy Y M, Sun Wanying, Sit Thomas H C, Brackman Christopher J, Tse Anne C N, Bui Christine H T, Tang Amy W Y, Wong Andrew N C, Tsang Andrew T L, Koo Joe C T, Cheng Samuel M S, Peiris Malik, Samborskiy Dmitry V, Gorbalenya Alexander E, Chin Alex W H, Poon Leo L M
School of Public Health, LKS Faculty of Medicine, The University of Hong Kong, G/F, Patrick Manson Building (North Wing), 7 Sassoon Road, Pokfulam, Hong Kong SAR, China.
Agriculture, Fisheries and Conservation Department, Government of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region, 5/F, Cheung Sha Wan Government Offices, 303 Cheung Sha Wan Road, Sham Shui Po District, Kowloon, Hong Kong SAR, China.
Virus Evol. 2025 Jul 1;11(1):veaf049. doi: 10.1093/ve/veaf049. eCollection 2025.
Migratory birds may carry emerging viruses over long distances. Regular surveillance and metagenomic analysis were employed to explore the diversity of avian coronaviruses at Hong Kong's Mai Po Wetland. We tested a total of 3239 samples collected from 2018 to 2024, among which the prevalence rate of viruses of the genus (64.4%) was higher than that of (35.6%). The host species were identified for 79.8% of the coronavirus-positive samples. Two deltacoronaviruses with full-genome sequences and one nearly complete gammacoronavirus genome were identified in faecal samples of three bird species. We also predicted putative transcriptional regulatory sequences and 3CLpro and PLpro cleavage sites for these viruses. Results from our phylogenetic analysis and pairwise amino acid identity comparisons, using the International Committee on Taxonomy of Viruses classification criteria based on the DEmARC framework, indicate that black-faced spoonbill coronavirus (BSCoV, strain MP22-1474) prototypes a new subgenus. Great cormorant coronavirus (GCCoV, strain MP18-1070) and falcated duck coronavirus (FDCoV, strain MP22-196) belong to two previously known species while diverging most profoundly from known viruses of these species. Two recombination events may have contributed to the evolution of FDCoV MP22-196 in genome regions from ORF1b to the S gene and from the M gene to the N gene. The cophylogenetic analysis between avian hosts and coronaviruses provides evidence for a strong linkage between viruses of the genus and the birds of order . This study highlights the importance of ongoing surveillance for coronaviruses in wild migratory birds.
候鸟可能远距离携带新出现的病毒。我们采用定期监测和宏基因组分析来探究香港米埔湿地禽冠状病毒的多样性。我们共检测了2018年至2024年收集的3239份样本，其中属病毒的流行率（64.4%）高于属病毒（35.6%）。79.8%的冠状病毒阳性样本的宿主物种得以鉴定。在三种鸟类的粪便样本中鉴定出了两个具有全基因组序列的三角洲冠状病毒和一个近乎完整的伽马冠状病毒基因组。我们还预测了这些病毒的假定转录调控序列以及3CLpro和PLpro切割位点。根据基于DEmARC框架的国际病毒分类委员会分类标准，我们的系统发育分析和成对氨基酸同一性比较结果表明，黑脸琵鹭冠状病毒（BSCoV，毒株MP22 - 1474）是一个新亚属的原型。鸬鹚冠状病毒（GCCoV，毒株MP18 - 1070）和罗纹鸭冠状病毒（FDCoV，毒株MP22 - 196）属于两个先前已知的物种，但与这些物种的已知病毒差异最为显著。两次重组事件可能促成了FDCoV MP22 - 196在从ORF1b到S基因以及从M基因到N基因的基因组区域的进化。禽宿主与冠状病毒之间的共系统发育分析为属病毒与目鸟类之间的紧密联系提供了证据。本研究强调了对野生候鸟冠状病毒持续监测的重要性。
