Identification, molecular and phylogenetic analysis of poxvirus in skin lesions of southern right whale

• Published in: Diseases of Aquatic Organisms
• Main Authors: Fiorito, Carla Daniela, Palacios, Carlos Adolfo, Golemba, Marcelo Darío, Bratanich, Ana Cristina, Argüelles, María Belén, Fazio, Ana, Bertellotti, Néstor Marcelo, Lombardo, Daniel Marcelo
• Format: Article in Journal/Newspaper
• Language: English
• Published: Inter-Research
• Subjects: Cetacean Poxvirus; Skin Disease; Southern Right Whale; Eubalaena Australis; https://purl.org/becyt/ford/1.6; https://purl.org/becyt/ford/1; Argentina
• Online Access: http://hdl.handle.net/11336/44396

Poxvirus skin disease has been reported in several species of cetaceans, principally in odontocetes, and a single report in mysticetes. Southern right whales Eubalaena australis in Peninsula Valdes, Argentina, show a variety of skin lesions of unknown etiology, and the number of these lesions has increased in recent years. Samples from dead whales were taken in order to establish the etiology of these lesions. One calf and one adult presented ring-type lesions, characterized by a circumscribed and slightly raised area of skin. Lesions were histologically characterized by the presence of microvesicles and vacuolated cells in the stratum spinosum, along with hyperplasia of the stratum corneum and eosinophilic inclusion bodies in the cytoplasm of the epithelial cells. Transmission electron microscopy showed aggregations of virions with typical poxvirus morphology. PCR of cetacean poxvirus (CPV) DNA polymerase, DNA topoisomerase I and parapoxvirus DNA polymerase gene fragments was done, and confirmed the presence of poxvirus in one sample. Phylogenetic analysis showed that the detected poxvirus belongs to the CPV-2 group. This is the first confirmed report of poxvirus in southern right whales in Argentina. Fil: Fiorito, Carla Daniela. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Nacional Patagónico; Argentina. Universidad de Buenos Aires. Facultad de Ciencias Veterinarias; Argentina Fil: Palacios, Carlos Adolfo. Universidad de Buenos Aires. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales. Departamento de Química Biológica. Laboratorio de Virología; Argentina. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Oficina de Coordinación Administrativa Parque Centenario. Instituto de Ciencia y Tecnología Argentina Fil: Golemba, Marcelo Darío. Gobierno de la Ciudad de Buenos Aires. Hospital de Pediatría Argentina Fil: Bratanich, Ana Cristina. Universidad de Buenos Aires. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales. Departamento de Química Biológica. Laboratorio de Virología; Argentina ...