BackgroundBats have been implicated as the main reservoir of coronavirus (CoV). Thus the role of these hosts on the evolution and spread of CoVs currently deserve the attention of emerging diseases surveillance programs. On the view of the interest on and importance of CoVs in bats the occurrence and molecular characterization of CoV were conducted in bats from Brazil.FindingsThree hundred five enteric contents of 29 bat species were tested using a panCoV nested RT-PCR. Nine specimens were positive and eight was suitable for RdRp gene sequencing. RdRp gene phylogeny showed that all CoVs strains from this study cluster in Alphacoronavirus genus, with one Molossidae and one Phlyllostomidae-CoV specific groups. Phylogenetic analyses of two S gene sequences showed a large diversity within the Alphacoronavirus genus.ConclusionsThis study indicated a CoV-to-host specificity and draws attention for CoV detection in Cynomops sp, a potential new reservoir. The phylogenetic analyses indicate that diversity of CoV in bats is higher than previously known.

Rotaviruses are the main agents responsible for diarrhea in different animal species and for infantile gastroenteritis. These viruses have been isolated from various avian species and have often been associated with poult enteritis and mortality syndrome. Nevertheless, the knowledge of rotavirus infection in turkeys is scarce. Six group A rotavirus strains obtained from pooled enteric contents of diarrheic turkeys were isolated in MA-104 cell culture and typed as G(6)P(1), a typical bovine rotavirus genotype. Additionally, the electropherotypes showed a migration pattern identical to the Nebraska calf diarrhea virus, and the complete NSP4 gene phylogeny showed that all six strains segregated in the genotype E2. Taken together, these results point toward a cattle-to-turkey rotavirus transmission. As a conclusion, bovine-origin rotavirus can be found in turkeys, and this transmission route must now be considered for the improvement of the health status in turkey farms.

This study aimed to survey for group A rotaviruses (RVA) in bats from Brazil and to perform phylogenetic inferences for VP4, VP7, NSP3, NSP4 and NSP5 genes. RVA was found in 9.18 % (28/305) of tested samples. The partial genotype constellation of a Molossus molossus RVA strain was G3-P[3]-Ix-Rx-Cx-Mx-Ax-Nx-T3-E3-H6, and that of a Glossophaga soricina RVA strain was G20-P[x]-Ix-Rx-Cx-Mx-Ax-Nx-T15-Ex-H15. These findings demonstrate an important role of bats in RVA epidemiology and provide evidence of participation of bat RVA strains in interspecies transmission and reassortment events.

Bovine torovirus (BToV) is an established enteric pathogen of cattle, but its occurrence in Brazilian cattle had not been reported until now. This article describes a survey on BToV in Brazil carried out on 80 fecal samples from diarrheic young and adult cattle, using a nested-RT-PCR targeting the nucleocapsid (N) gene. BToV was detected in 6.25% (5/80) of stool samples from three different geographic regions. Sequences analysis showed that Brazilian BToVs have a high degree of identity with European and Japanese BToVs and a lower degree of identity with North American Breda 1 strain. These results show that, albeit its low frequency and the scarce number of research on the field, BToV is still present amongst cattle populations.