TY - JOUR

T1 - Expanding diversity of tick-borne phleboviruses (Phlebovirus mukawaense, Mudanjiang phlebovirus, Gomselga Virus, and Onega tick phlebovirus) in Russia

AU - Kartashov, Mikhail Y.

AU - Kurushina, Valentina Y.

AU - Yanshin, Alexey O.

AU - Zheleznova, Alina S.

AU - Svirin, Kirill A.

AU - Tregubchak, Tatyana V.

AU - Ternovoi, Vladimir A.

AU - Agafonov, Alexander P.

AU - Gladysheva, Anastasia V.

N1 - Kartashov MY, Kurushina VY, Yanshin AO, Zheleznova AS, Svirin KA, Tregubchak TV, et al. (2026) Expanding diversity of tick-borne phleboviruses (Phlebovirus mukawaense, Mudanjiang phlebovirus, Gomselga Virus, and Onega tick phlebovirus) in Russia. PLoS One 21(6): e0349564. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0349564 The work was supported by the Ministry of Science and Higher Education of the Russian Federation (The Federal scientific-technical program for genetic technologies development for 2019-2030, Agreement № 075-15-2025-526). The funders had no role in study design, data collection and analysis, decision to publish, or preparation of the manuscript.

PY - 2026/6/2

Y1 - 2026/6/2

N2 - Tick-borne phleboviruses represent emerging pathogens with zoonotic potential, yet their distribution across Asian Russia remains poorly characterized. This study investigated the prevalence, genetic diversity, and evolutionary dynamics of phleboviruses in 1,078 individual Ixodes persulcatus ticks collected from 143 locations across Asian Russia during summer 2023. Samples underwent PCR screening, high-throughput sequencing for genome reconstruction, phylogenetic analysis, and AlphaFold protein structural modeling. We detected 27 phleboviral isolates belonging to Phlebovirus mukawaense (MKWV), Mudanjiang phlebovirus, Onega tick phlebovirus, and Gomselga virus, with prevalence rates of 0.6%, 0.1%, 0.3%, and 1.5%, respectively. Phylogenetic analysis suggested Gomselga virus belongs within the MKWV species complex. Complete coding sequences of Russian MKWV isolates enabled high-confidence structural predictions for key proteins. The predicted tertiary structure of the MKWV nucleoprotein exhibits strong similarity to those of Rift Valley fever virus and Toscana virus, despite limited sequence identity. The MKWV nucleoprotein features a conserved globular core with a well-defined RNA-binding cleft. Segment-specific phylogenetic incongruence among Primorsky MKWV isolates indicated potential reassortment events. Additionally, coinfections involving MKWV and Alongshan virus, Borrelia miyamotoi, or Rickettsia spp. were identified. These findings significantly expand the known geographic range and genetic diversity of tick-borne phleboviruses in Russia. The integration of genomic and structural data provides a robust framework for functional annotation and highlights the evolutionary stability of essential viral domains. Further research should focus on virus isolation and investigating antigenic properties and replication capacity in mammalian cells.

AB - Tick-borne phleboviruses represent emerging pathogens with zoonotic potential, yet their distribution across Asian Russia remains poorly characterized. This study investigated the prevalence, genetic diversity, and evolutionary dynamics of phleboviruses in 1,078 individual Ixodes persulcatus ticks collected from 143 locations across Asian Russia during summer 2023. Samples underwent PCR screening, high-throughput sequencing for genome reconstruction, phylogenetic analysis, and AlphaFold protein structural modeling. We detected 27 phleboviral isolates belonging to Phlebovirus mukawaense (MKWV), Mudanjiang phlebovirus, Onega tick phlebovirus, and Gomselga virus, with prevalence rates of 0.6%, 0.1%, 0.3%, and 1.5%, respectively. Phylogenetic analysis suggested Gomselga virus belongs within the MKWV species complex. Complete coding sequences of Russian MKWV isolates enabled high-confidence structural predictions for key proteins. The predicted tertiary structure of the MKWV nucleoprotein exhibits strong similarity to those of Rift Valley fever virus and Toscana virus, despite limited sequence identity. The MKWV nucleoprotein features a conserved globular core with a well-defined RNA-binding cleft. Segment-specific phylogenetic incongruence among Primorsky MKWV isolates indicated potential reassortment events. Additionally, coinfections involving MKWV and Alongshan virus, Borrelia miyamotoi, or Rickettsia spp. were identified. These findings significantly expand the known geographic range and genetic diversity of tick-borne phleboviruses in Russia. The integration of genomic and structural data provides a robust framework for functional annotation and highlights the evolutionary stability of essential viral domains. Further research should focus on virus isolation and investigating antigenic properties and replication capacity in mammalian cells.

UR - https://www.mendeley.com/catalogue/d8bea374-7169-3c98-a226-26d26618f82e/

UR - https://www.scopus.com/pages/publications/105040815858

U2 - 10.1371/journal.pone.0349564

DO - 10.1371/journal.pone.0349564

M3 - Article

C2 - 42228742

VL - 21

JO - PLoS ONE

JF - PLoS ONE

SN - 1932-6203

IS - 6 June

ER -