Genetic variants of the Crimean-Congo hemorrhagic fever virus circulating in endemic areas of Southern Tajikistan in 2009

Five-hundred-and-six Hyalomma anatolicum ticks were collected and studied in two Crimean-Congo hemorrhagic fever (CCHF) endemic regions of Tajikistan. Antigen and RNA of the CCHF virus were detected in 3.4% of tick pools from the Rudaki district using ELISA and RT-PCR tests. As for the Tursunzade district, viral antigen was identified in 9.0% of the samples and viral RNA was identified in 8.1% of the samples. Multiple alignment of the obtained nucleotide sequences of a region of the S-segment of the genome of the CCHF virus 287 nucleotides in length (996–1282) and the multiple alignment of the deduced amino-acid sequences of the samples carried out to compare with CCHF virus strains from the GenBank database, as well as their phylogenetic analysis, enabled us to conclude that the Asia 1 and Asia 2 genotypes of the CCHF virus are circulating in Tajikistan. It is important to note that the genotype Asia 1 virus was detected in Tajikistan for the first time.