Molecular detection and characterisation of the first Japanese encephalitis virus belonging to genotype IV acquired in Australia.

Background: A fatal case of Japanese encephalitis (JE) occurred in a resident of the Tiwi Islands, in the Northern Territory of Australia in February 2021, preceding the large JE outbreak in south-eastern Australia in 2022. This study reports the detection, whole genome sequencing and analysis of the virus responsible (designated JEV/Australia/NT_Tiwi Islands/2021).

Methods: Reverse transcription quantitative PCR (RT-qPCR) testing was performed on post-mortem brain specimens using a range of JE virus (JEV)-specific assays.

Australia as a global sink for the genetic diversity of avian influenza A virus.

Most of our understanding of the ecology and evolution of avian influenza A virus (AIV) in wild birds is derived from studies conducted in the northern hemisphere on waterfowl, with a substantial bias towards dabbling ducks. However, relevant environmental conditions and patterns of avian migration and reproduction are substantially different in the southern hemisphere. Through the sequencing and analysis of 333 unique AIV genomes collected from wild birds collected over 15 years we show that Australia is a global sink for AIV diversity and not integrally linked with the Eurasian gene pool.

Comparative genomic analysis of the first Ehrlichia canis detections in Australia.

Ehrlichia canis (Rickettsiales; Anaplasmataceae) is one of the most prevalent tick-borne pathogens of dogs globally. The bacterium infects monocytes and is the aetiological agent of canine monocytic ehrlichiosis. For many decades Australia was thought to be free of the pathogen, but this abruptly changed in May 2020 when E.

Complete Genome Sequence of African Swine Fever Virus Isolated from a Domestic Pig in Timor-Leste, 2019.

Here, we report the complete genome sequence of the African swine fever virus (ASFV) isolate ASFV/Timor-Leste/2019/1, isolated from a domestic pig during the first outbreak of ASF in Timor-Leste in 2019. Using target enrichment short-read Illumina data combined with long-read Oxford Nanopore data, we assembled a full-length genome sequence of 192,237 bp.