Fecal virome composition of migratory wild duck species

Abstract

The fecal virome comprises a complex diversity of eukaryotic viruses, phages and viruses that infect the host. However, little is known about the intestinal community of viruses that is present in wild waterfowl, and the structure of this community in wild ducks has not yet been studied. The fecal virome compositions of six species of wild dabbling ducks and one species of wild diving duck were thus analyzed. Fecal samples were collected directly from the rectums of 60 ducks donated by hunters. DNA and RNA virus particles were purified and sequenced using the MiSeq Illumina platform. The reads obtained from the sequencing were analyzed and compared with sequences in the GenBank database. Viral-related sequences from the Herpesviridae, Alloherpesviridae, Adenoviridae, Retroviridae and Myoviridae viral families showed the highest overall abundances in the samples. The virome analysis identified viruses that had not been found in wild duck feces and revealed distinct virome profiles between different species and between samples of the same species. This study increases our understanding of viruses in wild ducks as possible viral reservoirs and provides a basis for further studying and monitoring the transmission of viruses from wild animals to humans and disease outbreaks in domestic animals.