In-silico molecular analysis of rabies virus across regions

Rabies is a preventable viral disease of mammals most often transmitted through the bite of a rabid animal. Almost all human deaths caused by rabies occur in Asia and Africa. There are approximately 55000 human deaths annually from rabies worldwide. The disease affects domestic and wild animals and is spread to people through close contact with infected materials usually saliva via bites and scratches. The objective of this study wasi to determine the phylogenic structure of rabies viruses across species and geographical locations. A total of 22 Rabies virus sequences from 5 species (Dog, Cat, Cow, Wolf and Fox) across 8 locations (Nigeria, India, Ghana, Pakistan, Niger, Brazil, Argentina and Texas) were obtained from the GenBank. A Neighbor-joining tree on the basis of genetic distances depicting phylogenetic relationship among Rabies viruses was constructed using the complete deletion and p-distance option using the MEGA VERSION 5 SOFTWARE. The phylogenic analysis revealeds a strong subdivision of rabies viruses by geographical location. The phylogenic groups also formed clusters associated with species from which the virus is isolated.