Novel Sylvatic Rabies Virus Variant in Endangered Golden Palm Civet, Sri Lanka

Abstract

Information is scarce about sylvatic rabies virus in Asia and about rabies in palm civets. We report a novel sylvatic rabies virus variant detected in a golden palm civet in Sri Lanka. Evolutionary analysis suggests the virus diverged from canine rabies viruses in Sri Lanka in ≈1933 (range 1886–1963).

Keywords

• zoonoses
• viruses
• rabies
• Paradoxurus zeylonensis
• palm civet
• sylvatic