A novel gammaherpesvirus isolated from a black-tailed prairie dog (Cynomys ludovicianus).

A new gammaherpesvirus, tentatively named cynomys herpesvirus 1 (CynGHV-1), was isolated from a black-tailed prairie dog (Cynomys ludovicianus). CynGHV-1 replicated cytopathogenically to moderate titers in various cell lines. Ten kb of the CynGHV-1 genome was sequenced using degenerate PCR and genomic cloning. Sequence similarities were found to different genes from known gammaherpesviruses. Phylogenetic analysis suggested that CynGHV-1 was in fact a novel virus closely related to representatives of different genera and unclassified members of the subfamily Gammaherpesvirinae. However, CynGHV-1 could not be assigned to any particular genus and therefore remains unclassified.