Phylogenetic analysis of two rabies viruses, Takamen and Komatsugawa strains isolated in Japan in the 1940's

Abstract

The entire coding region of the nucleoprotein (N) gene of Takamen and Komatsugawa strains of rabies virus isolated in Japan in 1940's were determined. Phylogenetic analysis was performed on 140 lyssaviruses (128 viruses of genotype 1 and 12 lyssaviruses of other genotypes) isolated in various parts of the world, including the two Japanese rabies strains, based on the sequences of 1,350 nucleotides of the N gene. The rabies viruses were divided into 12 distinct clusters at least, reflecting geographical areas and hosts as reservoirs. The Takamen, Nishigahara, and RC-HL strains derived from the Nishigahara strain were grouped into the same cluster as the Chinese strain (3aG) in the worldwide distribution group. The Komatsugawa strain was grouped into the same cluster as the viruses from a raccoon dog from Khabarovsk, and from a steppe fox in area of Lake Baikal in Russia in a group consisting of Canada, Greenland, and the Arctic. These data along with the historical evidence suggest that Japanese rabies viruses, the Takamen and Komatsugawa strains, belong to two different clusters and moved into Japan from China and Russia, respectively.