Discovery of a novel Piscanivirus in yellow catfish (Pelteobagrus fulvidraco) in China.

A bacilliform virus was isolated from yellow catfish in China. This virus can directly adapt in cultures of EPC cells. The virus particles, which were rod-shaped approximately 120 nm long and 20 nm wide, were visible in the cytoplasm of EPC cells. The full-length genome of this virus is 26,985 nt. The genome contains four open reading frames that encode polyprotein1ab, spike glycoprotein, M protein, and N protein. There was a putative slippery sequence 14861UUUAAAC14867, which could be modeled into an RNA pseudoknot structure. The predicted amino acid sequence of pp1ab, S, M, and N genes shares 8.7%-40.2% homology with those of the two known Bafinivirus strains-WBV and FHMNV. Based on the viral morphology, genome organization, and sequence homology, this newly identified bacilliform virus appears to be Piscanivirus. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first report of Piscanivirus in yellow catfish and Piscanivirus in China.