Identification of Multiple Novel Viruses in Fecal Samples of Black-Necked Cranes Using Viral Metagenomic Methods.

The black-necked crane is the only species of crane that lives in the high-altitude region of the Tibet Plateau. At present, there is little research on viral diseases of the black-necked crane ( Grus nigricollis ). In this study, a viral metagenomic approach was employed to investigate the fecal virome of black-necked cranes in Saga County, Shigatse City, Tibet, China. The identified virus families carried by black-necked cranes mainly include Genomoviridae , Parvoviridae , and Picornaviridae . The percentages of sequence reads belonging to these three virus families were 1.6%, 3.1%, and 93.7%, respectively. Among them, one genome was characterized as a novel species in the genus Grusopivirus of the family Picornaviridae , four new parvovirus genomes were obtained and classified into four different novel species within the genus Chaphamaparvovirus of the subfamily Hamaparvovirinae , and four novel genomovirus genomes were also acquired and identified as members of three different species, including Gemykroznavirus haeme1 , Gemycircularvirus ptero6 , and Gemycircularvirus ptero10 . All of these viruses were firstly detected in fecal samples of black-necked cranes. This study provides valuable information for understanding the viral community composition in the digestive tract of black-necked cranes in Tibet, which can be used for monitoring, preventing, and treating potential viral diseases in black-necked cranes.