Four novel Picornaviruses detected in Magellanic Penguins (Spheniscus magellanicus) in Chile

Abstract

Members of the Picornaviridae comprise a significant burden on the poultry industry, causing diseases such as gastroenteritis and hepatitis. However, with the advent of metagenomics, a number of picornaviruses have now been revealed in apparently healthy wild birds. In this study, we identified four novel viruses belonging to the family Picornaviridae in healthy Magellanic Penguins (Spheniscus magellanicus), a near threatened species found along the coastlines of temperate South America. We collected 107 faecal samples from 72 individual penguins. Twelve samples were initially sequenced by high throughout sequencing with metagenomics approach. All samples were subsequently screened by PCR for these new viruses, and approximately 20% of the penguins were infected with at least one of these viruses, and seven individuals were co-infected with two or more. The viruses were distantly related to members of the genera Hepatoviruses, Tremoviruses and unassigned viruses from Antarctic Penguins and Red-Crowned Cranes. Further, they had more than 60% amino acid divergence from other picornaviruses, and therefore likely constitute novel genera. That these four novel viruses were abundant among the sampled penguins, suggests Magellanic Penguins may be a reservoir for several picornaviruses belonging to different genera. Our results demonstrate the vast undersampling of wild birds for viruses, and we expect the discovery of numerous avian viruses that are related to Hepatoviruses and Tremoviruses in the future.