Full Genome Characterization of Respiratory Syncytial Virus Causing a Fatal Infection in an Immunocompromised Patient in Tunisia

Human orthopneumovirus (HRSV) is a virus belonging to the Pneumovirus genus that causes lower respiratory tract infections (LRTI) in infants worldwide. In Tunisia, thousands of infants hospitalized for LRTI are found to be positive for HRSV but no whole genome sequences of HRSV strains circulating in this country are available thus far. In this study, five nasal swab samples collected at different time points from a three-month-old female baby with severe immunodeficiency that was hospitalized for acute bronchiolitis were investigated by next generation sequencing. The Tunisian sequences from this study originated from samples collected in 2021, belong to the ON1 genotype of HRSV-A, and are clustered with European sequences from 2019 and not from 2020 or 2021. This is most likely related to local region-specific transmission of different HRSV-A variants due to the COVID-19 related travel restrictions. Overall, this is the first report describing the whole genome sequence of HRSV from Tunisia. However, more sequence data is needed to better understand the genetic diversity and transmission dynamic of HRSV.