GENETIC-VARIABILITY ANALYSIS OF LYSSAVIRUS

The study of the genetic diversity of the nucleoprotein gene of the lyssavirus allowed us to propose new criteria of taxonomy and to investigate the phylogenetic relationships between the isolates. On the basis of their nucleotide sequence, six genotypes of lyssavirus can be distinguished, each of them separated by at least 20 % of divergence. Analysing isolates belonging to one genotype, the rate of nucleotide divergence appears relatively low, the differences correlating with the geographic origin of the isolates and not with the different animal species that act as vectors of rabies. Nevertheless at the amino acid level, host specific signatures of virus evolution can be identified. Primers were choosen in stretches Of nucleotides conserved between all the 6 genotypes of lyssavirus and used in a polymerase chain reaction as an alternative protocol for the diagnosis of rabies.