Molecular Characterisation of the Romanian African Swine Fever Virus p72 and B602L Genetic Markers.
4 affiliations
- 1Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, University of Agronomical Sciences and Veterinary Medicine, 050097 Bucharest, Romania.
- 2Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, University of Life Sciences "King Mihai I", 300645 Timişoara, Romania.
- 3Institute for Diagnosis and Animal Health (IDAH), 050557 Bucharest, Romania.
- 4Academy of Romanian Scientists (AOSR), Str. Ilfov, Nr. 3, Sector 5, 50044 Bucharest, Romania.
Abstract
African swine fever (ASF) remains one of the most devastating transboundary diseases affecting domestic pigs and wild boars worldwide, making molecular epidemiology essential for understanding viral transmission and supporting disease control. This study aimed to characterise African swine fever virus (ASFV) isolates circulating in Romania through comparative analysis of the B646L (p72) gene and the B602L central variable region (CVR). Fifty-four ASFV-positive samples collected from domestic pigs and wild boars were confirmed by real-time PCR and subjected to molecular analysis. Following Sanger sequencing and sequence quality assessment, 32 reliable consensus sequences were retained for B602L and 33 for p72. Sequencing of the p72 gene demonstrated a very high degree of nucleotide conservation, confirming that all successfully sequenced isolates belonged to genotype II. In contrast, the B602L region exhibited limited intra-genotypic variability characterised by scattered single nucleotide polymorphisms and localised insertion/deletion events, providing additional molecular resolution compared to p72, although insufficient for fine-scale epidemiological tracking. No genetic segregation according to host species was observed for either genomic region, and sequences obtained from domestic pigs and wild boar were interspersed in the phylogenetic analyses, demonstrating a high degree of genetic similarity at the investigated loci. These findings highlight the complementary value of p72 and B602L for ASFV molecular characterisation, while also indicating that these partial genomic markers alone cannot resolve transmission pathways or epidemiological links between domestic and wild host populations.
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BibTeX
@article{gurau2026molecular,
title = {{Molecular Characterisation of the Romanian African Swine Fever Virus p72 and B602L Genetic Markers.}},
author = {Maria Rodica Gurău and Georgeta Ștefan and Alexandru Gligor and Sonia-Lucreția Beșleagă and Florica Bărbuceanu and Stelian Bărăităreanu and Elena Negru and Doru Valentin Hristescu and Vlad Barbu Vuță and Monica Muțiu and Daniel Nicolae Donescu and Ionica Iancu and Viorel Herman and Luminita Costinar and Corina Pascu and Doina Daneș},
journal = {Veterinary sciences},
year = {2026},
month = sep,
doi = {10.3390/vetsci13100997},
url = {https://europepmc.org/article/MED/42944093},
note = {CC BY},
}
RIS
TY - JOUR
TI - Molecular Characterisation of the Romanian African Swine Fever Virus p72 and B602L Genetic Markers.
AU - Maria Rodica Gurău
AU - Georgeta Ștefan
AU - Alexandru Gligor
AU - Sonia-Lucreția Beșleagă
AU - Florica Bărbuceanu
AU - Stelian Bărăităreanu
AU - Elena Negru
AU - Doru Valentin Hristescu
AU - Vlad Barbu Vuță
AU - Monica Muțiu
AU - Daniel Nicolae Donescu
AU - Ionica Iancu
AU - Viorel Herman
AU - Luminita Costinar
AU - Corina Pascu
AU - Doina Daneș
PY - 2026
DA - 2026/09/22
JO - Veterinary sciences
DO - 10.3390/vetsci13100997
UR - https://europepmc.org/article/MED/42944093
AB - African swine fever (ASF) remains one of the most devastating transboundary diseases affecting domestic pigs and wild boars worldwide, making molecular epidemiology essential for understanding viral transmission and supporting disease control. This study aimed to characterise African swine fever virus (ASFV) isolates circulating in Romania through comparative analysis of the B646L (p72) gene and the B602L central variable region (CVR). Fifty-four ASFV-positive samples collected from domestic pigs and wild boars were confirmed by real-time PCR and subjected to molecular analysis. Following Sanger sequencing and sequence quality assessment, 32 reliable consensus sequences were retained for B602L and 33 for p72. Sequencing of the p72 gene demonstrated a very high degree of nucleotide conservation, confirming that all successfully sequenced isolates belonged to genotype II. In contrast, the B602L region exhibited limited intra-genotypic variability characterised by scattered single nucleotide polymorphisms and localised insertion/deletion events, providing additional molecular resolution compared to p72, although insufficient for fine-scale epidemiological tracking. No genetic segregation according to host species was observed for either genomic region, and sequences obtained from domestic pigs and wild boar were interspersed in the phylogenetic analyses, demonstrating a high degree of genetic similarity at the investigated loci. These findings highlight the complementary value of p72 and B602L for ASFV molecular characterisation, while also indicating that these partial genomic markers alone cannot resolve transmission pathways or epidemiological links between domestic and wild host populations.
SN - 2306-7381
ER -