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Volume 31, Number 12—December 2025

Dispatch

Persistent Infection in Harbor Seals 12–13 Years after Phocine Distemper Virus Epizootics in 1988 and 2002, North Sea

Marco W.G. van de Bildt, Jolianne M. Rijks, Trine Hammer Jensen, Sophie M.J.M. Brasseur, Marja J.L. Kik, Albert D.M.E. Osterhaus, Andrea Gröne, Thijs KuikenComments to Author , and Jooske IJzer
Author affiliation: Erasmus University Medical Centre, Rotterdam, the Netherlands (M.W.G. van de Bildt, T. Kuiken); Dutch Wildlife Health Centre, Utrecht, the Netherlands (J.M. Rijks, M.J.L. Kik, J. IJzer); Aalborg University, Aalborg, Denmark (T. Hammer Jensen); Wageningen Marine Research, Den Helder, the Netherlands (S.M.J.M. Brasseur); Utrecht University, Utrecht (M.J.L. Kik, A. Gröne, J. IJzer); University of Veterinary Medicine, Hannover, Germany (A.D.M.E. Osterhaus)

Main Article

Figure 2

Phylogenetic maximum-likelihood tree based on the deduced amino acid sequence of the hemagglutinin gene (1824 nt) in study of persistent infection in 2 harbor seals stranded in the North Sea region years after phocine distemper virus epizootics. Tree was constructed using the Jones-Taylor-Thornton substitution model with invariant sites and gamma distributed rate variation with 1,000 bootstrap replicates in MEGA 6.0 (https://www.megasoftware.net). Bootstrap values >70% are shown at nodes. GenBank accession numbers for each isolate were as follows: PDV/NL/1988, NC 028249.1; PDV/UK/1988, D10371.1; PDV/DK/1988, Z36979.1; PDV/USA/2006, HQ007902.1; PDV/DK/2002, FJ648456.1; PDV/DE/2002, KU342692.1; CDV, NC 001921.1. Isolates from this study were deposited under accession nos. KY681679.1 (PDV/NL/2001) and KU342688.1 (PDV/NL/2014). Scale bar indicates nucleotide substitutions per site. CDV, canine distemper virus; PDV, phocine distemper virus.

Figure 2. Phylogenetic maximum-likelihood tree based on the deduced amino acid sequence of the hemagglutinin gene (1824 nt) in study of persistent infection in 2 harbor seals stranded in the North Sea region years after phocine distemper virus epizootics. Tree was constructed using the Jones-Taylor-Thornton substitution model with invariant sites and gamma distributed rate variation with 1,000 bootstrap replicates in MEGA 6.0 (https://www.megasoftware.net). Bootstrap values >70% are shown at nodes. GenBank accession numbers for each isolate were as follows: PDV/NL/1988, NC 028249.1; PDV/UK/1988, D10371.1; PDV/DK/1988, Z36979.1; PDV/USA/2006, HQ007902.1; PDV/DK/2002, FJ648456.1; PDV/DE/2002, KU342692.1; CDV, NC 001921.1. Isolates from this study were deposited under accession nos. KY681679.1 (PDV/NL/2001) and KU342688.1 (PDV/NL/2014). Scale bar indicates nucleotide substitutions per site. CDV, canine distemper virus; PDV, phocine distemper virus.

Main Article

Page created: November 17, 2025
Page updated: January 01, 2026
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