Full genome sequences of two virulent strains of peste-des-petits ruminants virus, the Côte d'Ivoire 1989 and Nigeria 1976 strains

Peste-des-petits ruminants virus (PPRV) causes acute febrile illness in both farmed and wild small ruminants, with associated mortality rates of 50-80%. PPRV is a member of the Morbillivirus genus within the Paramyxovirus family and although there are many full length genome sequences available for members of this family, their availability for PPRV in particular is limited. We have determined the full length sequences representing two virulent strains of PPRV, the Côte d'Ivoire 1989 (CI/89) and Nigeria 1976 (Ng76/1) strains. We present an alignment of the promoter regions of these viruses with other available PPRV promoter sequences and have identified domains in PPRV proteins believed to be critical for paramyxovirus promoter attenuation. We have also analysed the proteins of these viruses, comparing them to other available PPRV protein sequences and identified motifs that were previously recognised as being required for the function of other paramyxovirus proteins.