First Detection and Genetic Characterization of Swine Orthopneumovirus from Domestic Pig Farms in the Republic of Korea

Abstract

Novel swine orthopneumovirus (SOV) infections have been identified in pigs in the USA and some European countries but not in Asian countries, including South Korea, to date. The current study reports the first SOV infections in four domestic pig farms located in four provinces across South Korea. The detection rate of SOV in oral fluid samples using qRT-PCR was 4.4% (14/389), indicating the presence of the virus in pigs at commercial farms in Korea. Two complete genome sequences and one glycoprotein (G) gene sequence were obtained from SOV-positive samples. The complete genome analysis of KSOV-2201 and KSOV-2202 strains showed 98.2 and 95.4% homologies with a previously reported SOV, and the phylogenetic tree exhibited a high correlation with a previously reported SOV strain from the US and a canine pneumovirus (CPnV) strain from China. Based on the genetic analysis of the viral G gene, the murine pneumonia virus (MPV)-like orthopneumoviruses (MLOVs) were divided into two genogroups (G1 and G2). Seventeen CPnVs and two feline pneumoviruses were grouped into G1, while the Korean SOV strains identified in this study were grouped into G2 along with one SOV and two CPnVs. These results will contribute to expanding our understanding of the geographical distribution and genetic characteristics of the novel SOV in the global pig population.