Evolution of puma lentivirus in bobcats (<i>Lynx rufus</i>) and mountain lions (<i>Puma concolor</i>) in North America

Justin S. Lee; Sarah N. Bevins; Laurel E.K. Serieys; Winston Vickers; Ken A. Logan; Mat Aldredge; Erin E. Boydston; Lisa M. Lyren; Roy McBride; Melody Roelke-Parker; Jill Pecon-Slattery; Jennifer L. Troyer; Seth P. Riley; Walter M. Boyce; Kevin R. Crooks; Sue VandeWoude

doi:10.1128/JVI.00473-14

Evolution of puma lentivirus in bobcats (Lynx rufus) and mountain lions (Puma concolor) in North America

Journal of Virology

By: Justin S. Lee, Sarah N. Bevins, Laurel E.K. Serieys, Winston Vickers, Ken A. Logan, Mat Aldredge, Erin E. Boydston, Lisa M. Lyren, Roy McBride, Melody Roelke-Parker, Jill Pecon-Slattery, Jennifer L. Troyer, Seth P. Riley, Walter M. Boyce, Kevin R. Crooks, and Sue VandeWoude

https://doi.org/10.1128/JVI.00473-14

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Abstract

Mountain lions (Puma concolor) throughout North and South America are infected with puma lentivirus clade B (PLVB). A second, highly divergent lentiviral clade, PLVA, infects mountain lions in southern California and Florida. Bobcats (Lynx rufus) in these two geographic regions are also infected with PLVA, and to date, this is the only strain of lentivirus identified in bobcats. We sequenced full-length PLV genomes in order to characterize the molecular evolution of PLV in bobcats and mountain lions. Low sequence homology (88% average pairwise identity) and frequent recombination (1 recombination breakpoint per 3 isolates analyzed) were observed in both clades. Viral proteins have markedly different patterns of evolution; sequence homology and negative selection were highest in Gag and Pol and lowest in Vif and Env. A total of 1.7% of sites across the PLV genome evolve under positive selection, indicating that host-imposed selection pressure is an important force shaping PLV evolution. PLVA strains are highly spatially structured, reflecting the population dynamics of their primary host, the bobcat. In contrast, the phylogeography of PLVB reflects the highly mobile mountain lion, with diverse PLVB isolates cocirculating in some areas and genetically related viruses being present in populations separated by thousands of kilometers. We conclude that PLVA and PLVB are two different viral species with distinct feline hosts and evolutionary histories.

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Additional publication details
Publication type	Article
Publication Subtype	Journal Article
Title	Evolution of puma lentivirus in bobcats (Lynx rufus) and mountain lions (Puma concolor) in North America
Series title	Journal of Virology
DOI	10.1128/JVI.00473-14
Volume	88
Issue	14
Year Published	2014
Language	English
Publisher	American Society for Microbiology
Contributing office(s)	Western Ecological Research Center
Description	11 p.
Larger Work Type	Article
Larger Work Subtype	Journal Article
Larger Work Title	Journal of Virology
First page	7727
Last page	7737
Country	United States
Other Geospatial	North America
Google Analytic Metrics	Metrics page