Metagenomic analysis uncovers novel hepadnaviruses and nackednaviruses

Abstract The rapid expansion of next-generation sequencing (NGS) databases over the past decade has significantly advanced the identification of novel viruses across a wide range of host species. The Serratus platform and the NCBI Sequence Read Archive (SRA) database were utilized to reassess and an...

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Main Authors: Haijing Ben, Xuejun Wang, Pengxiang Yang, Lin Li, Pengxiang Liu, Yuxue Gao, Yanjun Wang, Yali Liu, Chunyang Huang, Dexi Chen
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Nature Portfolio 2025-07-01
Series:Scientific Reports
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Online Access:https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-025-05993-z
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author Haijing Ben
Xuejun Wang
Pengxiang Yang
Lin Li
Pengxiang Liu
Yuxue Gao
Yanjun Wang
Yali Liu
Chunyang Huang
Dexi Chen
author_facet Haijing Ben
Xuejun Wang
Pengxiang Yang
Lin Li
Pengxiang Liu
Yuxue Gao
Yanjun Wang
Yali Liu
Chunyang Huang
Dexi Chen
author_sort Haijing Ben
collection DOAJ
description Abstract The rapid expansion of next-generation sequencing (NGS) databases over the past decade has significantly advanced the identification of novel viruses across a wide range of host species. The Serratus platform and the NCBI Sequence Read Archive (SRA) database were utilized to reassess and analyze publicly available NGS datasets, aiming to identify novel hepadnaviruses and nackednaviruses. Our analysis uncovered multiple complete genomes of previously unrecognized hepadnaviruses and nackednaviruses, including those putatively infecting animals such as hamsters and buffaloes. Additionally, we identified the presence and distribution of various hepadnaviruses and nackednaviruses in African cichlid fishes. In vitro assays employing replication-competent plasmids derived from the identified rice rat and frog hepadnaviruses demonstrated their capacity to support viral replication. The identification of these novel hepadnavirus and nackednavirus species provides valuable insights into the origin and evolutionary history of hepadnaviruses. Moreover, these findings open new avenues for investigating potential animal models to study hepadnavirus replication and infection.
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issn 2045-2322
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publishDate 2025-07-01
publisher Nature Portfolio
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series Scientific Reports
spelling doaj-art-a3e2e58e83514e3e91ca7b6a59a454032025-08-20T04:02:45ZengNature PortfolioScientific Reports2045-23222025-07-0115111310.1038/s41598-025-05993-zMetagenomic analysis uncovers novel hepadnaviruses and nackednavirusesHaijing Ben0Xuejun Wang1Pengxiang Yang2Lin Li3Pengxiang Liu4Yuxue Gao5Yanjun Wang6Yali Liu7Chunyang Huang8Dexi Chen9Beijing Institute of Hepatology, Beijing YouAn Hospital, Capital Medical UniversityBioinformatics Center of AMMSBeijing Institute of Hepatology, Beijing YouAn Hospital, Capital Medical UniversityBeijing Hospital, National Center of Gerontology, Institute of Geriatric Medicine, National Center for Clinical Laboratories, Chinese Academy of Medical SciencesBeijing Institute of Hepatology, Beijing YouAn Hospital, Capital Medical UniversityBeijing Institute of Hepatology, Beijing YouAn Hospital, Capital Medical UniversityBeijing Institute of Hepatology, Beijing YouAn Hospital, Capital Medical UniversityThe Third Unit, Department of Hepatology, Beijing YouAn Hospital, Capital Medical UniversityThe Second Unit, Department of Hepatology, Beijing YouAn Hospital, Capital Medical UniversityBeijing Institute of Hepatology, Beijing YouAn Hospital, Capital Medical UniversityAbstract The rapid expansion of next-generation sequencing (NGS) databases over the past decade has significantly advanced the identification of novel viruses across a wide range of host species. The Serratus platform and the NCBI Sequence Read Archive (SRA) database were utilized to reassess and analyze publicly available NGS datasets, aiming to identify novel hepadnaviruses and nackednaviruses. Our analysis uncovered multiple complete genomes of previously unrecognized hepadnaviruses and nackednaviruses, including those putatively infecting animals such as hamsters and buffaloes. Additionally, we identified the presence and distribution of various hepadnaviruses and nackednaviruses in African cichlid fishes. In vitro assays employing replication-competent plasmids derived from the identified rice rat and frog hepadnaviruses demonstrated their capacity to support viral replication. The identification of these novel hepadnavirus and nackednavirus species provides valuable insights into the origin and evolutionary history of hepadnaviruses. Moreover, these findings open new avenues for investigating potential animal models to study hepadnavirus replication and infection.https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-025-05993-zHepatitis B virusHepadnavirusNackednavirusViral infectionMetagenomics
spellingShingle Haijing Ben
Xuejun Wang
Pengxiang Yang
Lin Li
Pengxiang Liu
Yuxue Gao
Yanjun Wang
Yali Liu
Chunyang Huang
Dexi Chen
Metagenomic analysis uncovers novel hepadnaviruses and nackednaviruses
Scientific Reports
Hepatitis B virus
Hepadnavirus
Nackednavirus
Viral infection
Metagenomics
title Metagenomic analysis uncovers novel hepadnaviruses and nackednaviruses
title_full Metagenomic analysis uncovers novel hepadnaviruses and nackednaviruses
title_fullStr Metagenomic analysis uncovers novel hepadnaviruses and nackednaviruses
title_full_unstemmed Metagenomic analysis uncovers novel hepadnaviruses and nackednaviruses
title_short Metagenomic analysis uncovers novel hepadnaviruses and nackednaviruses
title_sort metagenomic analysis uncovers novel hepadnaviruses and nackednaviruses
topic Hepatitis B virus
Hepadnavirus
Nackednavirus
Viral infection
Metagenomics
url https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-025-05993-z
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