Truong Vy Ngoc Yen, Ellis Robert, Stanfield Brent A
Department of Veterinary Biomedical Sciences, School of Veterinary Medicine, Seoul National University, Gwanak-gu, Seoul 08826, Republic of Korea.
Department of Pathobiological Sciences, School of Veterinary Medicine, Louisiana State University, Baton Rouge, LA 70803, USA.
Viruses. 2025 Aug 5;17(8):1084. doi: 10.3390/v17081084.
The Guinea Pig X Virus (GPXV), a newly identified gammaherpesvirus, provides an opportunity to study viral evolution and host-virus dynamics. This study characterizes the GPXV genome and investigates its phylogenetic relationships and divergence from related viruses through comparative genomic and phylogenetic analyses. Virus propagation was conducted in Vero cells, followed by genomic DNA extraction and pan-herpesvirus nested PCR. Sanger sequencing filled gaps in the initial genome assembly, and whole-genome sequencing was performed using the Illumina MiSeq platform. Phylogenetic analyses focused on ORF8 (glycoprotein B), ORF9 (DNA polymerase catalytic subunit), ORF50 (RTA: replication and transcription activator), and ORF73 (LANA: latency-associated nuclear antigen). Results showed that GPXV ORFs showed variable evolutionary relationships with other gammaherpesviruses, including divergence from primate-associated viruses and clustering with bovine and rodent viruses. In addition to phylogenetics, a comprehensive comparative analysis of protein-coding genes between GPXV and the previously described Guinea Pig Herpes-Like Virus (GPHLV) revealed divergence. Twenty-four non-ORF genomic features were unique to GPXV, while 62 shared ORFs exhibited low to high sequence divergence. These findings highlight GPXV's distinct evolutionary trajectory and its potential role as a model for studying host-specific adaptations and gammaherpesvirus diversity.
豚鼠X病毒（GPXV）是一种新发现的γ疱疹病毒，为研究病毒进化和宿主-病毒动态关系提供了契机。本研究对GPXV基因组进行了特征分析，并通过比较基因组学和系统发育分析，研究了其系统发育关系以及与相关病毒的差异。病毒在Vero细胞中进行增殖，随后提取基因组DNA并进行泛疱疹病毒巢式PCR。桑格测序填补了初始基因组组装中的缺口，并使用Illumina MiSeq平台进行全基因组测序。系统发育分析聚焦于开放阅读框8（糖蛋白B）、开放阅读框9（DNA聚合酶催化亚基）、开放阅读框50（RTA：复制和转录激活因子）以及开放阅读框73（LANA：潜伏相关核抗原）。结果表明，GPXV的开放阅读框与其他γ疱疹病毒呈现出不同的进化关系，包括与灵长类相关病毒的差异以及与牛和啮齿动物病毒的聚类。除了系统发育分析外，对GPXV与先前描述的豚鼠类疱疹病毒（GPHLV）之间的蛋白质编码基因进行的全面比较分析也揭示了差异。24个非开放阅读框基因组特征是GPXV所特有的，而62个共享的开放阅读框则表现出从低到高的序列差异。这些发现突出了GPXV独特的进化轨迹及其作为研究宿主特异性适应性和γ疱疹病毒多样性模型的潜在作用。
