Isolation of Kaeng Khoi virus from dead Chaerephon plicata bats in Cambodia

Abstract

A virus isolated from dead Chaerephon plicata bats collected near Kampot, Cambodia, was identified as a member of the family Bunyaviridae by electron microscopy. The only bunyavirus previously isolated from Chaerephon species bats in South-East Asia is Kaeng Khoi (KK) virus (genus Orthobunyavirus), detected in Thailand over 30 years earlier and implicated as a public health problem. Using RT-PCR, nucleotide sequences from the M RNA segment of several virus isolates from the Cambodian C. plicata bats were found to be almost identical and to differ from those of the prototype KK virus by only 2.6-3.2 %, despite the temporal and geographic separation of the viruses. These results identify the Cambodian bat viruses as KK virus, extend the known virus geographic range and document the first KK virus isolation in 30 years. These genetic data, together with earlier serologic data, show that KK viruses represent a distinct group within the genus Orthobunyavirus.