RESUMEN

Severe fever with thrombocytopenia syndrome (SFTS) is a tick-borne viral disease that is increasingly affecting human being worldwide. The clinical manifestations and mortality rates of SFTS can vary depending on the geographic region and the specific genotype of the severe fever with thrombocytopenia syndrome virus (SFTSV). From July 2022 to August 2023, we collected serum samples from 83 patients with suspected SFTSV infection in the northwest of Hubei Province, China. From which, 13 patients tested positive for SFTSV. Phylogenetic analysis of the SFTSV L, M, and S gene segments was performed using the maximum likelihood method to determine the genetic diversity of the isolates. At least 2 SFTSV genotypes (A and F) were identified in the northwest of Hubei Province. The clinical manifestations and laboratory findings on the first day of admission were investigated. Results showed that bleeding and disturbance of consciousness, and significant elevated AST and APTT, are valuable for assessing the prognosis for SFTS patients. This study disclosed the genomic sequences and genotypes of SFTSV spreading in the northwest of Hubei Province for the first time, providing information of genetically etiology for SFTS in the local district. Furthermore, certain symptoms and/or laboratory findings may indicate adverse clinical outcomes, highlighting the importance of identifying the symptoms and monitoring specific laboratory markers. Future research is needed to investigate the threshold values of these markers and to closely observe the indicative symptoms in order to early identify and timely management of critically ill patients within clinical settings.

RESUMEN

Aims/Background Reliable health-related quality of life data are critical in developing countries, in order to advocate for government agencies to develop national hemophilia care programmes. This study aims to explore the current status and influencing factors of health-related quality of life among adolescents with hemophilia in Hubei Province, so as to provide empirical data for professionals. Methods A total of 84 children with hemophilia aged 8 to 18, who were registered in Tongji Hemophilia Treatment Center and Hubei Hemophilia Home, were selected using a cluster sampling method. The "General Situation Questionnaire of Hemophiliac Adolescents", designed by Tongji Hemophilia Treatment Center, and "the Chinese version of Canadian hemophilia outcomes-kid's life assessment tool (CHO-KLAT)", were used for this study conducted from June 1, 2022 to December 30, 2022. Results 82 completed questionnaires were included. The average age of the 82 adolescents was 13.04 ± 3.29 years and all were males. Among them, 67 were hemophilia A and 15 were hemophilia B. 61 cases were severe type, 19 were moderate type and 2 cases were mild type. The average total score of the CHO-KLAT for adolescents with hemophilia in Hubei Province was 49.49, which was lower than their counterparts in developed countries. The statistically significant influencing factors included residence, annual family income, and disease type. Conclusion This study provides empirical data support for the health management of adolescents with hemophilia, highlighting the importance of improving medical resource access, transfusion convenience, and psychological support in enhancing the quality of life for this group. The results emphasize the need for healthcare systems and policymakers to take specific measures to address these factors to improve the treatment and care conditions for adolescents with hemophilia.

Asunto(s)

RESUMEN

In South China, karst groundwater is an important water resource for industrial, agricultural, and drinking purposes. However, karst aquifers are highly vulnerable to pollution, leading to deteriorating karst groundwater quality and posing potential health risks to local residents. In this study, 22 groundwater samples were collected from a karst aquifer in the southwestern part of Hubei Province. The hydrogeochemical characteristics and their controlling factors were examined, and the potential health risks associated with groundwater pollutant concentrations in karst groundwater were assessed. The results showed that the groundwater is slightly alkaline with low chemical oxygen demand values, indicating good water quality. The groundwater facies type was identified as HCO3-Ca at most sample spots, showing low total dissolved solids concentrations. Substantial spatial variations in Na+, CO3 2-, and NO2 - concentrations were found, whereas spatial variations in the K+, Ca2+, Cl-, HCO3 -, and F- concentrations were small. In addition, the dissolution of gypsum deposits and magnesium carbonate sedimentary rocks at sampling sites resulted in groundwater facies types of HCO3•SO4-Ca and HCO3-Ca•Mg, with low total dissolved solids concentrations. The karst groundwater chemistry in the study area was mainly controlled by water-rock interactions, as well as by the dissolution of gypsum deposits and magnesium carbonate sedimentary rocks at specific groundwater sampling sites. The groundwater Cl- concentrations were mainly affected by atmospheric precipitation. NO3 - was mainly derived from atmospheric precipitation, domestic sewage, septic tanks, and industrial activities, whereas SO4 2- was derived from atmospheric precipitation, sulfate rock dissolution, and sulfide mineral oxidation. These results highlight the absence of potential human health risks of NO3 - and F- to infants, children, and adults, as their concentrations are below the corresponding regional background values. In contrast, the potential health risks of Cl- cannot be ignored, particularly for infants. This study offers scientific guidelines for protecting and allocating local groundwater resources.

Asunto(s)

RESUMEN

Exploring the ecological utility of cultivated land's carbon metabolism offers policy insights for ensuring its healthy operation and promote the dual carbon goals (carbon peak and carbon neutrality). We employed ecological network analysis (ENA) and kernel density estimation to conduct an empirical study, taking Hubei Province from 2000 to 2020 as an example. The results revealed apparent negative effects of carbon metabolic flow on regional carbon balance. Specifically, cultivated land conversion into transportation and industrial land contributed significantly to the harmful carbon flow. Ecological relationships showed fierce competition for carbon storage, leading to overall adverse ecological effects. The ecological utility indicated detrimental impacts on the orderly functioning of land-use carbon metabolism. Cultivated land's carbon metabolism will be essential in achieving land-use carbon neutrality. Therefore, territorial spatial low-carbon optimization should be implemented to realize its green and sustainable development.

Asunto(s)

RESUMEN

BACKGROUND: Previously, a novel multiplex system of 64 loci was constructed based on capillary electrophoresis platform, including 59 autosomal insertion/deletions (A-InDels), two Y-chromosome InDels, two mini short tandem repeats (miniSTRs), and an Amelogenin gene. The aim of this study is to evaluate the efficiencies of this multiplex system for individual identification, paternity testing and biogeographic ancestry inference in Chinese Hezhou Han (CHH) and Hubei Tujia (CTH) groups, providing valuable insights for forensic anthropology and population genetics research. RESULTS: The cumulative values of power of discrimination (CDP) and probability of exclusion (CPE) for the 59 A-InDels and two miniSTRs were 0.99999999999999999999999999754, 0.99999905; and 0.99999999999999999999999999998, 0.99999898 in CTH and CHH groups, respectively. When the likelihood ratio thresholds were set to 1 or 10, more than 95% of the full sibling pairs could be identified from unrelated individual pairs, and the false positive rates were less than 1.2% in both CTH and CHH groups. Biogeographic ancestry inference models based on 35 populations were constructed with three algorithms: random forest, adaptive boosting and extreme gradient boosting, and then 10-fold cross-validation analyses were applied to test these three models with the average accuracies of 86.59%, 84.22% and 87.80%, respectively. In addition, we also investigated the genetic relationships between the two studied groups with 33 reference populations using population statistical methods of FST, DA, phylogenetic tree, PCA, STRUCTURE and TreeMix analyses. The present results showed that compared to other continental populations, the CTH and CHH groups had closer genetic affinities to East Asian populations. CONCLUSIONS: This novel multiplex system has high CDP and CPE in CTH and CHH groups, which can be used as a powerful tool for individual identification and paternity testing. According to various genetic analysis methods, the genetic structures of CTH and CHH groups are relatively similar to the reference East Asian populations.

Asunto(s)

RESUMEN

Background: As a prodromal stage of dementia, significant emphasis has been placed on the identification of modifiable risks of mild cognitive impairment (MCI). Research has indicated a correlation between exposure to air pollution and cognitive function in older adults. However, few studies have examined such an association among the MCI population inChina. Objective: We aimed to explore the association between air pollution exposure and MCI risk from the Hubei Memory and Aging Cohort Study. Methods: We measured four pollutants from 2015 to 2018, 3 years before the cognitive assessment of the participants. Logistic regression models were employed to calculate odds ratios (ORs) to assess the relationship between air pollutants and MCI risk. Results: Among 4,205 older participants, the adjusted ORs of MCI risk for the highest quartile of PM2.5, PM10, O3, and SO2 were 1.90 (1.39, 2.62), 1.77 (1.28, 2.47), 0.56 (0.42, 0.75), and 1.18 (0.87, 1.61) respectively, compared with the lowest quartile. Stratified analyses indicated that such associations were found in both males and females, but were more significant in older participants. Conclusions: Our findings are consistent with the growing evidence suggesting that air pollution increases the risk of mild cognitive decline, which has considerable guiding significance for early intervention of dementia in the older population. Further studies in other populations and broader geographical areas are warranted to validate these findings.

Asunto(s)

RESUMEN

Clarifying the spatial distribution of the impact of different human disturbance activities on the net primary productivity (NPP) in regions with single climatic conditions is of considerable importance to ecological protection. Time-series NPP from 2000 to 2020 was simulated in Northwest Hubei, China, and the effects of the climate and human activities on the NPP changes were separated. Research results showed that from 2000 to 2020, the NPP change with an area of 10,166.63 km2 in Northwest Hubei is influenced by climate and human activities. Among them, human activities account for as high as 84.53%. From 2000 to 2020, the NPP in Northwest Hubei showed a slight upward trend at a rate of 1.61 g C m-2 year-1. The significantly increased NPP accounted for 21.4% of the total, which was mainly distributed in north of Northwest Hubei. And the farming of cultivated land led to the increase of NPP in west as well as the reduced human distribution in cultivated land, which was scattered in forests. Only 6.67% of the total area demonstrated a significantly decreased NPP, which was distributed mainly in the central affected by the expansion of rural-urban land and change of broad-leaved forests to shrubs and in southeast regions of Northwest Hubei caused by the increase in potential evapotranspiration. This study refined the driving factors of spatial heterogeneity of NPP changes in Northwest Hubei, which is conducive to rational planning of terrestrial ecosystem protection measures.

Asunto(s)

RESUMEN

Multiple outbreaks of avian infectious laryngotracheitis (ILT) in chickens, both domestically and internationally, have been directly correlate to widespread vaccine use in affected countries and regions. Phylogenetic and recombination event analyses have demonstrated that avian infectious laryngotracheitis virus (ILTV) field strains are progressively evolving toward the chicken embryo-origin (CEO) vaccine strain. Even with standardized biosecurity measures and effective prevention and control strategies implemented on large-scale farms, continuous ILT outbreaks result in significant economic losses to the poultry industry worldwide. These outbreaks undoubtedly hinder efforts to control and eradicate ILTV in the future. In this study, an ILTV isolate was successfully obtained by laboratory PCR detection and virus isolation from chickens that exhibited dyspnea and depression on a broiler farm in Hubei Province, China. The isolated strain exhibited robust propagation on chorioallantoic membranes of embryonated eggs, but failed to establish effective infection in chicken hepatocellular carcinoma (LMH) cells. Phylogenetic analysis revealed a unique T441P point mutation in the gJ protein of the isolate. Animal experiments confirmed the virulence of this strain, as it induced mortality in 6-wk-old chickens. This study expands current understanding of the epidemiology, genetic variations, and pathogenicity of ILTV isolates circulating domestically, contributing to the elucidate of ILTV molecular basis of pathogenicity and development of vaccine.

Asunto(s)

RESUMEN

Surveillance of mosquito vectors is critical for early detection, prevention and control of vector borne diseases. In this study we used advanced molecular tools, such as DNA barcoding in combination with novel sequencing technologies to discover new and already known viruses in genetically identified mosquito species. Mosquitoes were captured using BG sentinel traps in Western Kenya during May and July 2019, and homogenized individually before pooled into groups of ten mosquitoes. The pools and individual samples were then used for molecular analysis and to infect cell cultures. Of a total of fifty-four (54) 10-pools, thirteen (13) showed cytopathic effect (CPE) on VeroB4 cells, eighteen (18) showed CPE on C6/36 cells. Eight (8) 10-pools out of the 31 CPE positive pools showed CPE on both VeroB4 and C6/36 cells. When using reverse transcriptase polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR), Sanger sequencing and Twist Comprehensive Viral Research Panel (CVRP) (Twist Biosciences), all pools were found negative by RT-PCR when using genus specific primers targeting alphaviruses, orthobunyaviruses and virus specific primers towards o'nyong-nyong virus, chikungunya virus and Sindbis virus (previously reported to circulate in the region). Interestingly, five pools were RT-PCR positive for flavivirus. Two of the RT-PCR positive pools showed CPE on both VeroB4 and C6/36 cells, two pools showed CPE on C6/36 cells alone and one pool on VeroB4 cells only. Fifty individual mosquito homogenates from the five RT-PCR positive 10-pools were analyzed further for flavivirus RNA. Of these, 19 out of the 50 individual mosquito homogenates indicated the presence of flavivirus RNA. Barcoding of the flavivirus positive mosquitoes revealed the mosquito species as Aedes aegypti (1), Mansonia uniformis (6), Anopheles spp (3), Culex pipiens (5), Culex spp (1), Coquilletidia metallica (2) and Culex quinquefasciatus (1). Of the 19 flavivirus positive individual mosquitoes, five (5) virus positive homogenates were sequenced. Genome sequences of two viruses were completed. One was identified as the single-stranded RNA Culex flavivirus and the other as the double-stranded RNA Hubei chryso-like virus 1. Both viruses were found in the same Anopheles spp. homogenate extracted from a sample that showed CPE on both VeroB4 and C6/36 cells. The detection of both viruses in a single mosquito homogenate indicated coinfection. Phylogenetic analyses suggested that the Culex flavivirus sequence detected was closely related to a Culex flavivirus isolated from Uganda in 2008. All four Hubei chryso-like virus 1 segments clusters closely to Hubei chryso-like virus 1 strains isolated in Australia, China and USA. Two novel strains of insect-specific viruses in Anopheles mosquitoes were detected and characterized.

Asunto(s)

RESUMEN

Mypoviridae is a family of negative-sense RNA viruses with genomes of about 16.0 kb that have been found in myriapods. The mypovirid genome consists of three monocistronic RNA segments that encode a nucleoprotein (NP), a glycoprotein (GP), and a large (L) protein containing an RNA-directed RNA polymerase (RdRP) domain. This is a summary of the International Committee on Taxonomy of Viruses (ICTV) Report on the family Mypoviridae, which is available at: ictv.global/report/mypoviridae.

Asunto(s)

RESUMEN

OBJECTIVE: To identify the spatial distribution pattern of Oncomelania hupensis spread in Hubei Province, so as to provide insights into precision O. hupensis snail control in the province. METHODS: Data pertaining to emerging and reemerging snails were collected from Hubei Province from 2020 to 2022 to build a spatial database of O. hupensis snail spread. The spatial clustering of O. hupensis snail spread was identified using global and local spatial autocorrelation analyses, and the hot spots of snail spread were identified using kernel density estimation. In addition, the correlation between environments with snail spread and the distance from the Yangtze River was evaluated using nearest-neighbor analysis and Spearman correlation analysis. RESULTS: O. hupensis snail spread mainly occurred along the Yangtze River and Jianghan Plain in Hubei Province from 2020 to 2022, with a total spread area of 4 320.63 hm2, including 1 230.77 hm2 emerging snail habitats and 3 089.87 hm2 reemerging snail habitats. Global spatial autocorrelation analysis showed spatial autocorrelation in the O. hupensis snail spread in Hubei Province in 2020 and 2021, appearing a spatial clustering pattern (Moran's I = 0.003 593 and 0.060 973, both P values < 0.05), and the mean density of spread snails showed spatial aggregation in Hubei Province in 2020 (Moran's I = 0.512 856, P < 0.05). Local spatial autocorrelation analysis showed that the high-high clustering areas of spread snails were mainly distributed in 50 settings of 10 counties (districts) in Hubei Province from 2020 to 2022, and the high-high clustering areas of the mean density of spread snails were predominantly found in 219 snail habitats in four counties of Jiangling, Honghu, Yangxin and Gong'an. Kernel density estimation showed that there were high-, secondary high- and medium-density hot spots in snail spread areas in Hubei Province from 2020 to 2022, which were distributed in Jingzhou District, Wuxue District, Honghu County and Huangzhou District, respectively. There were high- and medium-density hot spots in the mean density of spread snails, which were located in Jiangling County, Honghu County and Yangxin County, respectively. In addition, the snail spread areas negatively correlated with the distance from the Yangtze River (r = -0.108 9, P < 0.05). CONCLUSIONS: There was spatial clustering of O. hupensis snail spread in Hubei Province from 2020 to 2022. The monitoring and control of O. hupensis snails require to be reinforced in the clustering areas, notably in inner embankments to prevent reemerging schistosomiasis.

Asunto(s)

RESUMEN

OBJECTIVE: To examine the impact of COVID-19 pandemic on the epidemic status of imported malaria and national malaria control program in China, so as to provide insights into post-elimination malaria surveillance. METHODS: All data pertaining to imported malaria cases were collected from Anhui Province, Hubei Province, Henan Province, Zhejiang Province and Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region during the period from January 1, 2018 through December 31, 2021. The number of malaria cases, species of malaria parasites, country where malaria parasite were infected, diagnosis and treatment after returning to China, and response were compared before (from January 1, 2018 to January 22, 2020) and after the COVID-19 pandemic (from January 23, 2020 to December 31, 2021). RESULTS: A total of 2 054 imported malaria cases were reported in Anhui Province, Hubei Province, Henan Province, Zhejiang Province and Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region during the period from January 1, 2018 to December 31, 2021, and there were 1 722 cases and 332 cases reported before and after the COVID-19 pandemic, respectively. All cases were reported within one day after definitive diagnosis. The annual mean number of reported malaria cases reduced by 79.30% in Anhui Province, Hubei Province, Henan Province, Zhejiang Province and Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region after the COVID-19 pandemic (171 cases) than before the pandemic (826 cases), and the number of monthly reported malaria cases significantly reduced in Anhui Province, Hubei Province, Henan Province, Zhejiang Province and Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region since February 2020. There was a significant difference in the constituent ratio of species of malaria parasites among the imported malaria cases in Anhui Province, Hubei Province, Henan Province, Zhejiang Province and Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region before and after the COVID-19 pandemic (χ2 = 146.70, P < 0.05), and P. falciparum malaria was predominant before the COVID-19 pandemic (72.30%), while P. ovale malaria (44.28%) was predominant after the COVID-19 pandemic, followed by P. falciparum malaria (37.65%). There was a significant difference in the constituent ratio of country where malaria parasites were infected among imported malaria cases in Anhui Province, Hubei Province, Henan Province, Zhejiang Province and Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region before and after the COVID-19 pandemic (χ2 = 13.83, P < 0.05), and the proportion of malaria cases that acquired Plasmodium infections in western Africa reduced after the COVID-19 pandemic that before the pandemic (44.13% vs. 37.95%; χ2 = 4.34, P < 0.05), while the proportion of malaria cases that acquired Plasmodium infections in eastern Africa increased after the COVID-19 pandemic that before the pandemic (9.58% vs. 15.36%; χ2 = 9.88, P = 0.02). The proportion of completing case investigation within 3 days was significantly lower after the COVID-19 pandemic than before the pandemic (96.69% vs. 98.32%; χ2= 3.87, P < 0.05), while the proportion of finishing foci investigation and response within 7 days was significantly higher after the COVID-19 pandemic than before the pandemic (100.00% vs. 98.43%; χ2 = 3.95, P < 0.05). CONCLUSIONS: The number of imported malaria cases remarkably reduced in Anhui Province, Hubei Province, Henan Province, Zhejiang Province and Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region of China during the COVID-19 pandemic, with a decreased proportion of completing case investigations within 3 days. The sensitivity of the malaria surveillance-response system requires to be improved to prevent the risk of secondary transmission of malaria due to the sharp increase in the number of imported malaria cases following the change of the COVID-19 containment policy.

Asunto(s)

RESUMEN

We examined long-term response (2008-2017) of the macrobenthos to the Hebei Spirit oil spill that occurred around the Taean coast, Korea, in December 2007. Oil concentrations were below the Korea/US environmental standards as of January 2008. Organic matter, chlorophyll-a, and zooplankton abundance dominated by Noctiluca scintillans were higher after the spill. Macrobenthic diversity recovered to pre-incident (2007) level in 2011. Biomass exceeded that level in 2011 and the increase prolonged for 5 years. Cross-correlation and regression analyses showed that chlorophyll-a at year t and zooplankton abundance at t-2 had a significant relationship with macrobenthic biomass at t (p < 0.05 for both), suggesting the transfer of increased organic matter (transformed from crude oil within the pelagic ecosystem) into the benthic ecosystem. Coastal wetlands around the incident area, vulnerable to oil pollution and slowly remobilizing accumulated oil, seemed to affect pelagic ecosystem processes and the unexpectedly increased and sustained biomass.

Asunto(s)

RESUMEN

Background/purpose: In December 2019, Wuhan, Hubei, China firstly reported the existence of the COVID-19 virus. It is crucial to prioritize the psychological well-being of citizens in lockdown cities and make more strides in the academic field of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) to prepare for the post-pandemic era. Methods: We took the cognitive-relational theory as our basis and collected Hubei province-level data (N = 3,465) to examine the impact of perceived social status decline on the prevalence of PTSD symptoms, and checked the mediating effect of perceived vulnerability to disease (PVD) during the period of psychological adjustment. Results: Using propensity score matching, we estimate the average treatment effect of perceived social status decline on PTSD level, and we robustly regress the two with weight adjustment generated in matching. We found that more decline in perceived social status is associated with a worse degree of PTSD symptoms, and confirmed PVD's buffering role although the mediating effect was not as high as hypothesized. Conclusion and implications: Our study confirmed the decisive role of subject social status in health prediction compared to traditional socioeconomic measures, which extends the cognitive-relational in examining socioeconomic status and contributes to the dialog on socioeconomic inequality. We also suggested providing more social support at the community level and enhancing individuals' positive understanding to protect mental health.

RESUMEN

Exploring the spatial relationship and ecological compensation mechanism of each function of arable land in poor mountainous areas is important to promote rural revitalization and enhance arable land protection. Taking the mountainous region of Western Hubei (MRWH) as an example, this study quantified the "three living" functions of arable land and its secondary functions. Using the root mean square deviation method to calculate the trade-off index, a quantitative method can more scientifically reflect the trade-off relationship between arable land functions and measure the overall ecological compensation. Studies have shown that (1) the value of the production function exhibits a growing and subsequently a falling trend, whereas the value of living function and ecological function exhibits an increasing trend over time, with an average functional value of 5310, 220 and 6496 million yuan, respectively. The spatial pattern of the "three living" functional values decreases from west to east. Among them, water conservation and soil conservation function values show a high distribution in the south and low in the north, gas purification and agricultural pollution functional values show a scattered spatial pattern, and the value of other functions shows an increasing trend from southeast to northwest; (2) among the primary functions, the trade-off between production and ecological functions is the strongest, decreasing, and then increasing over time, with an average trade-off index of 0.89. Among the secondary functions, there is the most obvious trade-off between the food supply function and the five ecological functions, which requires coordination; (3) overall, the total amount of ecological compensation has shown an upward trend, with priority areas for level I ecological compensation increasing year by year. Optimized compensation zones and potential compensation zones are concentrated in the northwest, ecological balance zones are located in the central part, and optimized development compensation zones and key development compensation zones are located in the southeast. According to the research, MRWH is oriented to ecological function, followed by the production function, supplemented by the living function. Green agriculture should be vigorously developed and ecological function space should be compressed by strictly limiting the excessive expansion of production activities. Promoting the improvement of production function through ecological function, while exploring the potential value of living function. Ecological compensation in strict accordance with the priority of ecological compensation, zoning. Realizing cross-regional cooperation, low compensation areas drive high compensation areas to achieve sustainable development of arable land.

Asunto(s)

RESUMEN

Two new species of Ochlodes Scudder, 1872, Ochlodespseudochraceus Zhu, Fan & Wang, sp. nov. and Ochlodescryptochraceus Zhu, Fan & Chiba, sp. nov., are found in China and described, and Ochlodesrikuchina (Butler, 1878) stat. rev. is restored. A lectotype is designated for Pamphilaochracea Bremer, 1861, and a neotype is designated for Pamphilarikuchina Butler, 1878. Overall, the two new species are similar to Ochlodesochraceus (Bremer, 1861). They, however, can be distinguished from the latter and other species in the genus: O.pseudochraceus has long radial spots in spaces R3-5, and the lateral process of the phallus gradually widens at the distal half in male genitalia; O.cryptochraceus has the lateral process of the phallus enlarged only at the distal tip. Based on the phylogenetic analyses of the mitochondrial COI gene, members of currently defined O.ochraceus are grouped into four clades. The genetic distances between O.pseudochraceus and O.ochraceus, O.cryptochraceus and O.ochraceus, O.rikuchina and O.ochraceus, and O.pseudochraceus and O.cryptochraceus are 3.2%, 2.1%, 1.9%, and 2.7%, respectively. Based on the molecular and morphological evidence, O.pseudochraceus, O.cryptochraceus, and O.rikuchina are treated to be distinct species. The adult habitus and male and female genitalia of the new species are illustrated as well as those of O.ochraceus and O.rikuchina.

RESUMEN

Hubei mosquito virus 2 (HMV2) is a novel mosquito virus that was first identified in 2016 in Hubei Province, China. Until now, HMV2 has been shown to be endemic in some areas of China and Japan, but its biological characteristics, epidemiology, and pathogenicity are not yet known. This report describes the detection of HMV2 in mosquitoes that were collected in Shandong Province in 2019 and presents the first isolation and molecular characterization of the virus. In this study, a total of 2,813 mosquitoes were collected and then divided into 57 pools, according to location and species. qRT-PCR and nested PCR were performed to confirm the presence of HMV2, and its genomic features, phylogenetic relationships, growth characteristics, and potential pathogenicity were further analyzed. The results showed that HMV2 was detected in 28 of the 57 mosquito pools and that the minimum infection rate (MIR) for HMV2 was 1.00% (28/2,813). A HMV2 strain and 14 viral partial sequences were obtained from the HMV2-positive pools, including one complete genome sequence. A phylogenetic analysis revealed that HMV2 from Shandong Province shared over 90% identity with other reported isolates and was closely related to the Culex inatomii luteo-like virus. IMPORTANCE Our study provided important epidemiological evidence for the epidemic of HMV2 in Shandong Province. Here, we report the first isolation and molecular characteristics of this virus and enrich our knowledge of the distribution of HMV2 in China.

Asunto(s)

RESUMEN

One new species of the genus Pseudopoda Jäger, 2000, Pseudopodadeformis Gong & Zhong, sp. nov. (♂, ♀), is described and documented with digital images from Shennongjia Forestry District, Hubei Province, China, based on morphology and DNA barcodes. This new species is separated from other Pseudopoda species by the unique type of internal ducts of the female vulva that are curved longitudinally, forming a narrow triangle or trapezoidal shape. In addition, DNA barcodes for this species are provided.

RESUMEN

Calystegia hederacea (Convolvulaceae) is one of the most problematic perennial weeds widely distributed around or in crop fields. Our previous studies showed that C. hederacea is natural reservoir of sweet potato chlorotic stunt virus isolate CH (SPCSV-CH) and sweet potato latent virus (SPLV) (Liu et al. 2020; Zhao et al. 2022). To shed further light on the role of C. hederacea in the epidemiology of sweet potato viruses, in May 2021, a total of seven C. hederacea plants (five asymptomatic, one curling and one mild vein-clearing) were collected from two different sweet potato fields in Xinxiang city of Henan Province in China. Total RNA was prepared from a pool of the seven leaf samples using the EZNA Plant RNA Kit (Omega Bio-Tek, Norcross, GA). A library was constructed from the ribosomal-depleted RNA using the NEBNext Ultra Directional RNA Library Prep Kit for Illumina (NEB, MA, USA) and sequenced using the Illumina HiSeq platform (Novogene, Tianjin, China). A total of 139,057,020 paired-end clean reads of 150 bp were obtained after removing adaptor sequences and low-quality reads and used for de novo assembly using the Trinity (v2.2.0) software. Blast searches of the assembled contigs longer than 200 bp against NCBI nucleotide and protein sequence databases revealed the presence of 37 contigs (237 to 4885 bp) and 19 contigs (261 to 758 bp) with high nucleotide (nt) identity with SPLV and SPCSV-CH, respectively. The occurrence of SPLV and SPCSV-CH on C. hederacea was previously reported, and thus the contig sequences related to SPLV and SPCSV-CH were not subjected to further verification in this study. In addition, one contig (2,827 bp) with the highest nt sequence identity of 94.94% with sweet potato leaf curl Hubei virus (SPLCHbV, genus Begomovirus, family Geminiviridae, accession no. MK931304) was assembled from 16,592 reads, with average coverage depth of 740.5X. These results suggested the presence of SPLCHbV in C. hederacea. To further confirm the RNA sequencing result, each of the seven samples was tested by PCR using partially overlapping (italicized nucleotides) forward and reverse primers (SweeIn-F1, 5`-GGAGGAAGCTAAGTACGAGAATCAGTTAGAG-3`; SweeIn-R1, 5`-GCTTCCTCCTTGTGATTGTAAGTAACATGG-3`) that were designed based on the SPLCHbV-related contig for amplification of circular DNA viral genome (approximately 2.7 kb). Two symptomatic and three symptomless C. hederacea samples were SPLCHbV positive, indicating that virus-like symptoms of the two C. hederacea samples were probably not induced by SPLCHbV. Two of the five amplified products were completely sequenced and deposited to GenBank (accession nos. OQ551733 and OQ551734). Sequences analysis showed that the complete genome sequences of two SPLCHbV C. headrace isolates (2,763 nt and 2,761 nt) had 96.53% nt identity with each other and 95.92 to 97.70% nt identity with that of SPLCHbV isolate Shandong7-2017 (MK931304). In August 2021, fourteen C. hederacea plants (three symptomatic, 11 asymptomatic) collected from natural fields from Zhumadian and Pingdingshan cities in Henan Province, were tested by PCR using SweeIn-F1/R1 primers for SPLCHbV, showing that eight samples were SPLCHbV positive. SPLCHbV belongs to the sweepoviruses, a group of phylogenetically distinct begomoviruses infecting sweet potato, and was reported to infect sweet potato from many provinces of China (Wang et al., 2021). To the best of our knowledge, this is the first report of SPLCHbV infection in C. hederacea, which expands the natural host range of SPLCHbV.

RESUMEN

Norovirus (NoV) is an important cause of viral acute gastroenteritis (AGE). To gain insights into the epidemiological characteristics and genetic diversity of NoV among children in Hubei, 1216 stool samples from children (≤ 5 years) obtained under AGE surveillance from January 2017 to December 2019 were analyzed. The results showed that NoV was responsible for 14.64% of AGE cases, with the highest detection rate in children aged 7-12 months (19.76%). Statistically significant differences were found between male and female infection rates (χ2 â€‹= â€‹8.108, P â€‹= â€‹0.004). Genetic analysis of RdRp and VP1 sequences showed that NoV GII genotypes were GII.4 Sydney [P31] (34.35%), GII.3 [P12] (25.95%), GII.2 [P16] (22.90%), GII.4 Sydney [P16] (12.98%), GII.17 [P17] (2.29%), GII.6 [P7] and GII.3 [P16] (each at 0.76%). GII.17 [P17] variants were divided into the Kawasaki323-like lineage and the Kawasaki308-like lineage. A unique recombination event was detected between strains of GII.4 Sydney 2012 and GII.4 Sydney 2016. Significantly, all GII.P16 sequences associated with GII.4/GII.2 obtained in Hubei were correlated with novel GII.2 [P16] variants that re-emerged in Germany in 2016. Antigenic site analysis of complete VP1 sequences from all GII.4 variants from Hubei identified notable variable residues of antibody epitopes. Genotyping under continuous AGE surveillance and observation of the antigenic sites of VP1 are important monitoring strategies for emerging NoV strains.

Asunto(s)