<em>Redondoviridae</em>: High Prevalence and Possibly Chronic Shedding in Human Respiratory Tract, But No Zoonotic Transmission

• Main Authors: Nguyen Thi Kha Tu, Xutao Deng, Nguyen Thi Thu Hong, Nguyen Thi Han Ny, Tran My Phuc, Pham Thi Thanh Tam, Duong An Han, Luu Thi Thu Ha, Guy Thwaites, H. Rogier van Doorn, Anna-Maija K. Virtala, Eric Delwart, Stephen Baker, Olli Vapalahti, Le Van Tan, on behalf of the VIZIONS Consortium
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Published: MDPI AG 2021-03-01
• Series: Viruses
• Subjects: redondoviruses; vientovirus; brisavirus; persistence; respiratory; animals
• Online Access: https://www.mdpi.com/1999-4915/13/4/533

<i>Redondoviridae</i> is a recently discovered DNA virus family consisting of two species, <i>vientovirus</i> and <i>brisavirus</i>. Here we used PCR amplification and sequencing to characterize redondoviruses in nasal/throat swabs collected longitudinally from a cohort of 58 individuals working with animals in Vietnam. We additionally analyzed samples from animals to which redondovirus DNA-positive participants were exposed. Redondoviruses were detected in approximately 60% of study participants, including 33% (30/91) of samples collected during episodes of acute respiratory disease and in 50% (29/58) of baseline samples (with no respiratory symptoms). Vientovirus (73%; 24/33) was detected more frequently in samples than brisaviruses (27%; 9/33). In the 23 participants with at least 2 redondovirus-positive samples among their longitudinal samples, 10 (43.5%) had identical redondovirus replication-gene sequences detected (sampling duration: 35–132 days). We found no identical redondovirus replication genes in samples from different participants, and no redondoviruses were detected in 53 pooled nasal/throat swabs collected from domestic animals. Phylogenetic analysis described no large-scale geographical clustering between viruses from Vietnam, the US, Spain, and China, indicating that redondoviruses are highly genetically diverse and have a wide geographical distribution. Collectively, our study provides novel insights into the <i>Redondoviridae</i> family in humans, describing a high prevalence, potentially associated with chronic shedding in the respiratory tract with lack of evidence of zoonotic transmission from close animal contacts. The tropism and potential pathogenicity of this viral family remain to be determined.