bioRxiv Science⌕ Search

bioRxiv · 10.1101/2024.07.24.605015

Spatiotemporal dispersion of DENV1 genotype V in western Colombia

Abstract

Dengue virus (DENV) is a significant public health concern in Colombia, with increased transmission of DENV type 1 (DENV-1) in the departments of Risaralda and Valle del Cauca in the Central-West region of the country following a large outbreak in 2019. However, little is known about the source, genetic diversity, and evolution of circulating viruses. We obtained plasma samples from individuals with acute DENV infection and analyzed DENV-1 genetic diversity, phylodynamics, and phylogeography. We found that most viruses belonged to DENV-1 genotype V, and phylogenetic analysis revealed three distinct clades, each of which was most closely related to viruses from neighboring departments of Colombia sampled over the last 5-10 years. Thus, the 2019 outbreak and subsequent DENV-1 circulation was not due to the introduction of a new lineage but rather reflected local DENV-1V dispersion and evolution. We identified amino acid positions under positive selection in structural proteins and NS1, which may have a role in immune evasion and pathogenesis. Overall, our analysis of DENV1 genotype V diversity, evolution and spread within Colombia highlights the important role of genomic surveillance in understanding virus dynamics during endemic circulation and outbreaks.

Explore related subjects

Keep this discovery

Explore connections, maps & timelines

BibTeXRIS

Rojas-Gallardo, D., Ferrell, T., Paula, E., Lopez, D., Giraldo, B., Restrepo-Chica, J., Jimenez-Posada, E., Martinez-Gutierrez, M., Ruiz-Saenz, J., Key, A., Shariatzadeh, N., Khosravi, D., Martinez, M. A., Bombin, A., Waggoner, J. J., Osorio, J. E., Neufeldt, C. J., Collins, M. H., Cardona-Ospina, J. A., Piantadosi, A.. 2024-07-25. Spatiotemporal dispersion of DENV1 genotype V in western Colombia. https://doi.org/10.1101/2024.07.24.605015

Cite the original work for its findings. Save a collection to share your selection of sources.

KEEP EXPLORING

Related preprints

Ocean current models predict spatial structure for coastal biodiversity

Genomic diversity provides the raw material through which all evolutionary processes occur. Accurately describing how environmental features affect patterns of diversity shows promise in predicting the resilience of populations and entire communities to dynamic environments and novel stressors. Identifying the contribution of purely neutral responses to environmental effects can be difficult, especially across large spatial ranges with many covarying environmental features. Using an individual-based model of larvae carried by ocean currents, we predict patterns of neutral genomic diversity in a passively dispersed coastal species, suggesting large geographic regions of relative homogeneity with ancestry determined by the nearest "upstream" population with limited larval input. The genomic identity that dominates each region sharply transitions at the next such interruption, generating hierarchical structure and violating assumptions of isolation-by-distance. We call these upstream populations "lineage source regions" (LSRs), and we find strong concordance between LSR model predictions and an empirical population genomic survey of a keystone salt marsh mussel (Geukensia demissa). We quantitatively validate model performance and goodness-of-fit, updating baseline predictions of genomic diversity patterns from the classic isolation-by-distance model to this LSR framework. This spatially explicit coastal ancestry model has potential for generalization across passive dispersing species.

evolutionary biology↗

TaxaAudit: A statistical model of consensus in phylogenetics identifies non-monophyletic taxa

Interpreting variation in genes and traits across species requires understanding their evolutionary relationships. Taxonomic hierarchies provide a practical approximation of the tree of life, with the NCBI taxonomy linking this framework directly to public sequence data. Some named groups, however, are not evolutionary clades, and recognizing these exceptions requires knowledge scattered across the phylogenetics literature. Here we introduce TaxaAudit, a statistical model that identifies taxonomic groups whose monophyly is repeatedly contradicted by published phylogenies. The model accounts for background taxonomic conflict and the ability of each study's species sampling to expose non-monophyly. Applied to 5,865 molecular phylogenies from TimeTree, TaxaAudit flagged 516 NCBI taxa at family rank and below for significant recurrent contradiction of monophyly. Excluding these taxa's monophyly requirements improved the taxonomy's agreement with independent phylogenomic reference trees and phylogenies withheld from discovery. Flagged taxa were also 3.61 times as likely as matched controls to have their monophyly challenged in publications outside the discovery set. In tree-inference experiments, excluding these monophyly constraints improved agreement with reference phylogenies relative to enforcing the unmodified taxonomy. By identifying groups whose monophyly should not be assumed, TaxaAudit lets researchers draw on published phylogenetic knowledge without reviewing the specialist literature for every taxon. This supports broader use of the NCBI taxonomy as an evolutionary framework for biological comparisons.

evolutionary biology↗

Shared landscape, divergent genomes: Comparative population genomics of co-occurring flora in an isolated Australian mountain range

Understanding how landscape heterogeneity shapes genomic variation is key to conserving biodiversity and evolutionary potential. Yet conservation genomics is typically conducted at the single species level, limiting our ability to identify shared genomic patterns or understand how co-occurring taxa differ in their response to common environmental gradients. We assessed spatial patterns of genomic variation and their associations with geographic and environmental features among populations of nine co-existing plant species with contrasting life-histories and ecological traits across Gariwerd, a threatened biodiversity hotspot in south-eastern Australia. All species exhibited weak overall genetic structure, although the magnitude and spatial distribution of differentiation varied among species. Despite this variation, broadly consistent spatial trends were apparent, with higher genomic divergence largely concentrated in central zones and higher genomic diversity localised in southern regions of the landscape. Significant associations between genetic differentiation and geographic distance were observed in three species, while another species showed associations with environmental distance. These findings demonstrate that coexisting species can show overlapping spatial patterns in genomic variation while differing markedly in their associations with geographic and environmental variation across the same landscape. This comparative approach provides a basis for spatial prioritisation and conservation planning, while highlighting the complex eco-evolutionary processes operating across heterogeneous landscapes.

evolutionary biology↗