Skip to main content

ORIGINAL RESEARCH article

Front. Cell. Infect. Microbiol.
Sec. Molecular Viral Pathogenesis
Volume 14 - 2024 | doi: 10.3389/fcimb.2024.1507277
This article is part of the Research Topic Advances in Understanding Livestock and Poultry Coronavirus Infections: Mechanisms, Pathogenesis, and Control Strategies View all 5 articles

Genomic Characterization and Tissue Tropism Variations of Two Porcine Delta Coronavirus Strains Isolated in China

Provisionally accepted
Hao Zhang Hao Zhang 1*Guangli Hu Guangli Hu 1Yihui Huang Yihui Huang 1Zexin Chen Zexin Chen 1Rui Geng Rui Geng 1ZHIQING ZHAO ZHIQING ZHAO 1Ouyang Peng Ouyang Peng 1Chuangchao Zou Chuangchao Zou 1Hanqin Shen Hanqin Shen 2Cao Y. chang Cao Y. chang 1
  • 1 Sun Yat-sen University, Guangzhou, China
  • 2 Wen's Foodstuff Group Co. Ltd, Yunfu, 云浮市, China

The final, formatted version of the article will be published soon.

    The porcine delta coronavirus (PDCoV) is a member of the Delta coronavirus genus, which can lead to diarrhea, vomiting, and mortality in piglets. First detected in Hong Kong in 2012, PDCoV has since spread globally. In January 2024, two strains, CHN-ANHZ-2024 and CHN-JSSQ-2024, were isolated from diarrheal piglets in Anhui and Jiangsu provinces.Immunofluorescence assays, electron microscopy, and genome sequencing were performed.Genome analysis revealed that both PDCoV strains belonged to the Chinese lineage, exhibiting amino acid mutations in the S1 region compared to other strains within the lineage.Amino acid mutation at position 530L is uniquely associated with the Thai strain. Notably, CHN-JSSQ-2024 was identified as a recombinant strain of DH1 and CHN-AHHN-2024, with the recombination occurring in the S2 subunit. CHN-ANHZ-2024 caused severe diarrhea with an 80% mortality rate, whereas CHN-JSSQ-2024 resulted in mild diarrhea without mortality.Viral load analysis showed CHN-ANHZ-2024 primarily infecting the brain and kidneys, while CHN-JSSQ-2024 targeted the lungs, revealing notable differences in tissue tropism. We designed the RNA scope Probe-PDCoV-N to visualize viral RNA in the positively detected organs, viral RNA was detected in the brain, cerebellum, kidneys, and lungs of the infected piglets. This study highlights significant differences in the pathogenicity and organ tropism of two PDCoV strains. The CHN-ANHZ-2024 strain caused severe diarrhea and high mortality in piglets, while the CHN-JSSQ-2024 strain exhibited much milder symptoms. Additionally, the study elucidated notable differences in organ tropism between the strains, offering valuable insights into the epidemiological characteristics and pathogenic mechanisms of PDCoV. These findings provide a foundation for the development of targeted prevention and treatment strategies tailored to specific strains in the future.

    Keywords: Porcine delta coronavirus, PDCoV, Immunogenicity, Tissue tropism, isolation and identification

    Received: 07 Oct 2024; Accepted: 31 Oct 2024.

    Copyright: © 2024 Zhang, Hu, Huang, Chen, Geng, ZHAO, Peng, Zou, Shen and chang. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) or licensor are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.

    * Correspondence: Hao Zhang, Sun Yat-sen University, Guangzhou, China

    Disclaimer: All claims expressed in this article are solely those of the authors and do not necessarily represent those of their affiliated organizations, or those of the publisher, the editors and the reviewers. Any product that may be evaluated in this article or claim that may be made by its manufacturer is not guaranteed or endorsed by the publisher.