First complete genomic sequencing of recent canine rabies viruses in Sierra Leone suggests cross-border transmission of Africa 2H subclade

Sheng Sun; Abdul Gudush Jalloh; Jinxia Zhang; Shuo Yu; Xiankai Liu; Weidi Xu; Yan Liu; Changchun Tu; Ye Feng

doi:10.1016/j.virs.2026.06.010

June 2026

. doi: 10.1016/j.virs.2026.06.010

Citation: Sheng Sun, Abdul Gudush Jalloh, Jinxia Zhang, Shuo Yu, Xiankai Liu, Weidi Xu, Yan Liu, Changchun Tu, Ye Feng. First complete genomic sequencing of recent canine rabies viruses in Sierra Leone suggests cross-border transmission of Africa 2H subclade .VIROLOGICA SINICA, 2026, 41(3) : 728-731. http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.virs.2026.06.010

塞拉利昂首个犬狂犬病病毒全基因序列分析证实Africa 2H亚型存在跨境传播

孙盛 ^a ,
Abdul Gudush Jalloh ^b ,
张锦霞 ^a ,
余硕 ^c ,
刘先凯 ^c ,
许炜迪 ^a ,
刘艳 ^a ,
涂长春 ^a,e,, ,
冯烨 ^a,d,,

a. 中国农业科学院长春兽医研究所病原微生物生物安全全国重点实验室, 长春, 吉林;
b. 塞拉利昂动物福利协会, 弗里敦, 塞拉利昂;
c. 北京生物工程研究所, 北京;
d. 军事医学研究院病原体与生物安全国家重点实验室, 北京;
e. 扬州大学江苏高校动物疫病与人兽共患病防控协同创新中心, 扬州, 江苏

通讯作者： 涂长春, changchun_tu@outlook.com; 冯烨, fengye621@126.com
收稿日期： 2025-06-05
录用日期： 2026-06-15

摘要

狂犬病仍是全球公共卫生领域关注的重要人畜共患病之一，动物宿主是病毒传播的唯一源头。在非洲大陆，所有国家均流行犬介导的人间狂犬病，每年导致约2.15万人死亡。塞拉利昂在狂犬病监测方面面临严峻的挑战，该疾病长期被忽视，现有流行病学数据极为有限。本研究成功获得该国首个狂犬病病毒(RABV)全基因组序列。系统发育分析表明，塞拉利昂流行毒株属于Africa 2B和Africa 2H亚型，与周边国家毒株具有高度基因组同源性，这些亚型在周边国家普遍流行，为理解塞拉利昂及周边区域的狂犬病分子流行病学提供了关键线索。
- 塞拉利昂
- , 狂犬病病毒（RABV）
- , 全基因组序列

First complete genomic sequencing of recent canine rabies viruses in Sierra Leone suggests cross-border transmission of Africa 2H subclade

Sheng Sun ^a ,
Abdul Gudush Jalloh ^b ,
Jinxia Zhang ^a ,
Shuo Yu ^c ,
Xiankai Liu ^c ,
Weidi Xu ^a ,
Yan Liu ^a ,
Changchun Tu ^a,e,, ,
Ye Feng ^a,d,,

a. Key Laboratory of Jilin Province for Zoonoses Prevention and Control, State Key Laboratory of Pathogen and Biosecurity, Academy of Military Medical Sciences, Changchun 130122, China;
b. Sierra Leone Animal Welfare Society, Freetown 999127, Sierra Leone;
c. Beijing Institute of Biotechnology, Beijing 100054, China;
d. State Key Laboratory of Pathogen and Biosecurity, Academy of Military Medical Sciences, Beijing 100071, China;
e. Jiangsu Co-Innovation Center for the Prevention and Control of Important Animal Infectious Disease and Zoonoses, Yangzhou University, Yangzhou 225009, China

Corresponding author: Changchun Tu, changchun_tu@outlook.com Ye Feng, fengye621@126.com
Received Date: 05 June 2025
Accepted Date: 15 June 2026

Abstract

Highlights
1 First set of three complete genomic sequences of RABV strains was obtained from Sierra Leone.
2 Phylogenetic analysis identified the endemic Africa 2H subclade with high homology to those from neighboring countries.
3 Low dog vaccination coverage underscores urgent need for coordinated vaccination and surveillance.

References
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6. Mshelbwala, P.P., Wangdi, K., Bunting-Graden, J.A., Bamayange, S., Adamu, A.M., Gupta, S.D., Suluku, R., Adamu, C.S., Weese, J.S., Rupprecht, C.E. and Clark, N.J., 2024. Insights into canine rabies vaccination disparities in Sierra Leone: a cross-sectional household study. PLoS Neglected Trop. Dis. 18, e0012332.
7. Suluku, R., Bakarr, I.A., Johnny, J., Ellis, F.J.,2012. Post-war demographic and ecological survey of dog populations and their human relationships in Sierra Leone.(A case study of urban freetown). Sci. J. Agricult. Res. Manag. 282, 1-7.
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10. Voupawoe, G., Varkpeh, R., Kamara, V., Sieh, S., Traore, A., De Battisti, C., Angot, A., de J Loureiro, L.F.L., Soumare, B., Dauphin, G. and Abebe, W., 2021. Rabies control in Liberia: joint efforts towards zero by 30. Acta Trop. 216, 105787.
11. WOAH, 2024. Rabies (infection with rabies virus and other lyssaviruses), Manual of Diagnostic Tests and Vaccines for Terrestrial Animals, thirteenth ed. 2024. Available online: https://www.woah.org/en/what-we-do/standards/codes-and-manuals/terrestrial-manual-online-access/(accessed November 29, 2024).
12. Zhang, L., Cruz, J., Tian, Y., Wang, Y., Jiang, J., Gonzales, R.M., Azul, R.R., Pena, R.C.D., Sun, S., Liu, Y. and Jiang, T., 2025. Phylogeography analysis reveals rabies epidemiology, evolution, and transmission in the Philippines. Mol. Biol. Evol. 42, msaf007.
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通讯作者: 陈斌, bchen63@163.com

1.
沈阳化工大学材料科学与工程学院沈阳 110142

First complete genomic sequencing of recent canine rabies viruses in Sierra Leone suggests cross-border transmission of Africa 2H subclade

Corresponding author: Changchun Tu, changchun_tu@outlook.com

Corresponding author: Ye Feng, fengye621@126.com

a. Key Laboratory of Jilin Province for Zoonoses Prevention and Control, State Key Laboratory of Pathogen and Biosecurity, Academy of Military Medical Sciences, Changchun 130122, China;

b. Sierra Leone Animal Welfare Society, Freetown 999127, Sierra Leone;

c. Beijing Institute of Biotechnology, Beijing 100054, China;

d. State Key Laboratory of Pathogen and Biosecurity, Academy of Military Medical Sciences, Beijing 100071, China;

e. Jiangsu Co-Innovation Center for the Prevention and Control of Important Animal Infectious Disease and Zoonoses, Yangzhou University, Yangzhou 225009, China

Received Date: 05 June 2025

Accepted Date: 15 June 2026

Abstract: Highlights
1 First set of three complete genomic sequences of RABV strains was obtained from Sierra Leone.
2 Phylogenetic analysis identified the endemic Africa 2H subclade with high homology to those from neighboring countries.
3 Low dog vaccination coverage underscores urgent need for coordinated vaccination and surveillance.

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塞拉利昂首个犬狂犬病病毒全基因序列分析证实Africa 2H亚型存在跨境传播

摘要

First complete genomic sequencing of recent canine rabies viruses in Sierra Leone suggests cross-border transmission of Africa 2H subclade

Abstract

References

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通讯作者: 陈斌, bchen63@163.com