Sorex araneus polyomavirus 1 | |
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Virus classification ![]() | |
(unranked): | Virus |
Realm: | Monodnaviria |
Kingdom: | Shotokuvirae |
Phylum: | Cossaviricota |
Class: | Papovaviricetes |
Order: | Sepolyvirales |
Family: | Polyomaviridae |
Genus: | Alphapolyomavirus |
Species: | Sorex araneus polyomavirus 1 |
Sorex araneus polyomavirus 1, formerly known as Human polyomavirus 12 (HPyV12), is a virus of the polyomavirus family that was first identified in human hosts and also infects shrews. [1] It was discovered and reported in 2013 after isolation from the organs of the gastrointestinal tract, particularly the liver. [2] The virus was renamed to Sorex araneus polyomavirus 1 in 2018, after discovery of the same virus in shrews. [1] Infecting multiple hosts is rare among mammalian polyomaviruses. [3]
HPyV12 was first discovered in 2013 by generic PCR used to screen samples of the organs of the gastrointestinal tract. HPyV12 was identified first and most commonly in liver samples; it was also occasionally detected in the colon and rectum and in feces. [2]
The HPyV12 genome follows the typical organization for a polyomavirus, containing a small and large tumor antigen and three viral capsid proteins; it has no open reading frame corresponding to an agnoprotein. In the 2015 taxonomic update to the polyomavirus group, the International Committee on Taxonomy of Viruses classified HPyV12 as a member of the genus Alphapolyomaviridae, whose type species is murine polyomavirus (Mus musculus polyomavirus 1). [4] Following the discovery of highly similar polyomaviruses in shrews (Soricidae), [1] the virus was formally reclassified in 2018 as Sorex araneus polyomavirus 1. [5]
The prevalence of HPyV12 is not well characterized and published estimates from seroprevalence studies — that is, prevalence of detectable antibodies against viral proteins indicating either past or present exposure — vary widely. A 2013 survey found that between 15–33% of healthy adults exhibited evidence of exposure, with slightly lower rates in children. [2] By contrast, a 2018 study in an Italian population reported over 90% prevalence, [6] while another 2018 survey in Dutch adults found prevalence to be around 4%, among the lowest of the polyomaviruses known to infect humans. [7]
There is no known clinical significance associated with HPyV12. [8]