An endogenous gibbon ape leukemia virus (GALV) identified in a rodent (Melomys sp.) from Indonesia

Gibbon ape leukemia virus (GALV) and koala retrovirus (KoRV) most likely originated froma cross-species transmission of an ancestral retrovirus into koalas and gibbons via one or moreintermediate as yet unknown hosts. A highly similar virus to GALV has been identified in anAustralian rodent (Melomys burtoni) after extensive screening of Australian wildlife. GALV-likeviruses have also been discovered in several Southeast Asian species although screening has not beenextensive and viruses discovered to date are only distantly related to GALV. We therefore screened 26Southeast Asian rodent species for KoRV- and GALV-like sequences, using hybridization capture andhigh-throughput sequencing, in the attempt to identify potential GALV and KoRV hosts. Only onespecies, an undescribed species of Melomys from Indonesia, was positive yielding an endogenousprovirus very closely related to a strain of GALV. The sequence of the critical receptor domain forGALV infection in the Indonesian Melomys sp. was consistent with the susceptibility of the species toGALV infection. The discovery of a GALV in a second Melomys species provides further evidencethat Melomys may play a role in the spread of GALV-like viruses, especially since the genus is foundin Indonesia, Papua New Guinea and Australia, connecting the home ranges of koalas and gibbons