Molecular survey of herpesviruses in bats from Chile and Spain reveals potentially novel species

Abstract

Bats (order Chiroptera) are known as important hosts and reservoirs for several zoonotic viruses. To this date, most virology studies in bats have focused on RNA viruses; consequently, information about DNA viruses is more limited. Herein we surveyed the presence of herpesviruses in blood or spleen samples of three bat species of Spain (n=31) and five bat species of Chile (n=50) by using a broad-spectrum nested PCR. Overall, herpesvirus DNA was detected in 9.7% (3/31) bats of Spain and 10.0% (5/50) bats of Chile. Three gammaherpesvirus sequence types were found in bats from Spain, while sequence types of two betaherpesviruses, two gammaherpesviruses and one unclassified herpesvirus were detected in Chilean bats, two of which could represent novel herpesvirus species. The impact (if any) of these herpesviruses on the health of the studied species needs to be clarified. This study increases our knowledge of herpesvirus diversity in bats and expands their geographic range in South America. Future herpesvirus surveillance studies are warranted to test chiropteran families other than Vespertilionidae and Molossidae in Chile and Spain.