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Genetic diversity of bat coronaviruses and comparative genetic analysis of MERS-related coronaviruses in South Korea.

Bats have been identified as a natural reservoir of several potentially zoonotic viruses, including Lyssavirus, Ebola virus, Marburg virus, Hendra virus, Nipah virus, as well as SARS and MERS-coronavirus. Here, we performed a molecular epidemiological investigation of South Korean bat viruses. Genetic comparative analysis was performed on the spike glycoprotein gene of the detected MERS-related coronaviruses. Among 1,640 samples (348 oral swabs, 1,199 fecal samples, 83 urine samples, and 10 bat carcass) collected across 24 South Korean provinces during 2017-2019, coronavirus was detected in 82 samples (75 feces and 7 oral swab samples) from 11 provinces. Surveillance over the three years during which samples were collected revealed significantly higher coronavirus detection rates between spring and autumn, and a high detection rate in Vespertillionidae and Rhinolophidae bats. Our phylogenetic analysis shows that Korean bat coronaviruses are genetically diverse regardless of their spatiotemporal distribution and their host species, and that the discovered bat coronaviruses belong to various subgenera within the Alpha- and Betacoronavirus genera. Twenty detected MERS-related coronaviruses belonging to the genus Betacoronavirus were similar to the Ia io bat CoV NL140422 and NL13845 strains. A comprehensive genetic analysis of two Korean bat MERS-related CoV spike RBDs (176 and 267 strains) showed that the 18 critical residues that are involved in interactions with the human DPP4 receptor are most similar to the NL13845 strain, which is known to not bind with hDPP4. A deeper analysis of the interfacing residues in the Korean bat MERS-related CoVs RBD-hDPP4 complexes showed that the Korean bat CoVs has fewer polar contacts than the NL13845 strain. Although further study will be needed, these results suggest that Korean bat MERS-related CoVs are unlikely to bind with hDPP4. Nevertheless, these findings highlight the need for continuous monitoring to identifying the origin of new infectious diseases, specifically mutant coronavirus. This article is protected by copyright. All rights reserved.