Virome of Rhipicephalus ticks by metagenomic analysis in Guangdong, southern China

Tick-borne viruses (TBVs) have increasingly caused a global public health concern. This study collected Rhipicephalus ticks in Guangdong, southern China to identify RNA viruses. Meta-transcriptome analysis revealed the virome in Rhipicephalus ticks, resulting in the discovery of 10 viruses, including Lihan tick virus, Brown dog tick phlebovirus 1 and 2 in the family Phenuiviridae, Mivirus and Wuhan tick virus 2 in the family Chuviridae, Wuhan tick virus 1 in the family Rhabdoviridae, bovine hepacivirus in the family Flaviviridae, Guangdong tick quaranjavirus (GTQV) in the family Orthomyxoviridae, Guangdong tick orbivirus (GTOV) in the family Reoviridae, and Guangdong tick Manly virus (GTMV) of an unclassified family. Phylogenetic analysis showed that most of these TBVs were genetically related to the strains in countries outside China, and GTQV, GTOV, and GTMV may represent novel viral species. These findings provided evidence of the long-distance spread of these TBVs in Guangdong, southern China, suggesting the necessity and importance of TBV surveillance.