Bat coronaviruses related to SARS-CoV-2 and infectious for human cells.

The animal reservoir of SARS-CoV-2 is unknown despite reports of SARS-CoV-2-related viruses in Asian Rhinolophus bats1-4, including the closest virus from R. affinis, RaTG13 (refs. 5,6), and pangolins7-9. SARS-CoV-2 has a mosaic genome, to which different progenitors contribute. The spike sequence determines the binding affinity and accessibility of its receptor-binding domain to the cellular angiotensin-converting enzyme 2 (ACE2) receptor and is responsible for host range10-12. SARS-CoV-2 progenitor bat viruses genetically close to SARS-CoV-2 and able to enter human cells through a human ACE2 (hACE2) pathway have not yet been identified, although they would be key in understanding the origin of the epidemic. Here we show that such viruses circulate in cave bats living in the limestone karstic terrain in northern Laos, in the Indochinese peninsula. We found that the receptor-binding domains of these viruses differ from that of SARS-CoV-2 by only one or two residues at the interface with ACE2, bind more efficiently to the hACE2 protein than that of the SARS-CoV-2 strain isolated in Wuhan from early human cases, and mediate hACE2-dependent entry and replication in human cells, which is inhibited by antibodies that neutralize SARS-CoV-2. None of these bat viruses contains a furin cleavage site in the spike protein. Our findings therefore indicate that bat-borne SARS-CoV-2-like viruses that are potentially infectious for humans circulate in Rhinolophus spp. in the Indochinese peninsula.

Phylogenetic and morphological significance of an overlooked flying squirrel (Pteromyini, Rodentia) from the eastern Himalayas with the description of a new genus.

The flying squirrels (Pteromyini, Rodentia) are the most diverse and widely distributed group of gliding mammals. Taxonomic boundaries and relationships within flying squirrels remain an area of active research in mammalogy. The discovery of new specimens of Pteromys ( Hylopetes) leonardi Thomas, 1921 previously considered a synonym of Hylopetes alboniger, in Yunnan Province, China allowed a morphological and genetic reassessment of the status of this taxon. Phylogenetic reconstruction was implemented using sequences of two mitochondrial (12S ribosomal DNA and 16S ribosomal DNA) and one nuclear (interphotoreceptor retinoid-binding protein) gene fragments. Morphological assessments involved examinations of features preserved on skins, skulls, and penises of museum specimens, supplemented with principal component analysis of craniometric data. Together these assessments revealed that this taxon should be recognized not only as a distinct species, and should also be placed within a new genus, described here as Priapomys.

New Locality Records of Ixodes granulatus and Ixodes vespertilionis (Acari: Ixodidae) From Tree-Shrews (Scandentia: Tupaiidae) and Bats (Chiroptera: Hipposideridae) in Laos.

Between May and June 2015, 512 bats, six rodents, and six tree-shrews were examined for ectoparasites in Vientiane and Khammouane Provinces, Laos. Thirty-seven ticks (33 females and four males) identified as Ixodes granulatus Supino were collected from four individuals of the Northern tree-shrew, Tupaia belangeri (Wagner) (Scandentia:Tupaiidae), and one female of Ixodes vespertilionis Koch was collected from one individual of the Intermediate Leaf-nosed Bat, Hipposideros larvatus (Horsfield) (Chiroptera:Hipposideridae). This appears to be the first record of I. vespertilionis from Laos, as well as the first record of this host-parasite relationship in the Southeast Asia region.

Rediscovery of Biswamoyopterus (Mammalia: Rodentia: Sciuridae: Pteromyini) in Asia, with the description of a new species from Lao PDR.

A new species of the flying squirrel genus Biswamoyopterus is described from Lao PDR. It is based on a single specimen collected from a local food market at Ban Thongnami, Pak Kading District, Bolikhamxai Province. The new taxon shows close affinities to Biswamoyopterus biswasi, which is only known from the holotype collected in 1981, 1250 km from the current locality, in Arunachal Pradesh, Northeast India. However, it differs substantially in pelage colour, most particularly on the ventral surfaces of the body, patagia, tail membrane, and tail. The single specimen was found in an area of central Lao PDR, which is characterised by its extensive limestone karst formations and which is home to other rare endemic rodents, including the Khanyou (Laonastes aenigmamus) nd the Lao limestone rat (Saxatilomyspaulinae).