RT Journal Article SR Electronic(1) A1 Schulz, Claudia A1 Bréard, Emmanuel A1 Sailleau, Corinne A1 Jenckel, Maria A1 Viarouge, Cyril A1 Vitour, Damien A1 Palmarini, Massimo A1 Gallois, Mélanie A1 Höper, Dirk A1 Hoffmann, Bernd A1 Beer, Martin A1 Zientara, StéphanYR 2016 T1 Bluetongue virus serotype 27: detection and characterization of two novel variants in Corsica, France JF Journal of General Virology, VO 97 IS 9 SP 2073 OP 2083 DO https://doi.org/10.1099/jgv.0.000557 PB Microbiology Society, SN 1465-2099, AB During the compulsory vaccination programme against bluetongue virus serotype 1 (BTV-1) in Corsica (France) in 2014, a BTV strain belonging to a previously uncharacterized serotype (BTV-27) was isolated from asymptomatic goats. The present study describes the detection and molecular characterization of two additional distinct BTV-27 variants found in goats in Corsica in 2014 and 2015. The full coding genome of these two novel BTV-27 variants show high homology (90–93 % nucleotide/93–95 % amino acid) with the originally described BTV-27 isolate from Corsican goats in 2014. These three variants constitute the novel serotype BTV-27 (‘BTV-27/FRA2014/v01 to v03’). Phylogenetic analyses with the 26 other established BTV serotypes revealed the closest relationship to BTV-25 (SWI2008/01) (80 % nucleotide/86 % amino acid) and to BTV-26 (KUW2010/02) (73–74 % nucleotide/80–81 % amino acid). However, highest sequence homologies between individual segments of BTV-27/FRA2014/v01–v03 with BTV-25 and BTV-26 vary. All three variants share the same segment 2 nucleotype with BTV-25. Neutralization assays of anti-BTV27/FRA2014/v01–v03 sera with a reassortant virus containing the outer capsid proteins of BTV-25 (BTV1VP2/VP5 BTV25) further confirmed that BTV-27 represents a distinct BTV serotype. Relationships between the variants and with BTV-25 and BTV-26, hypotheses about their origin, reassortment events and evolution are discussed., UL https://www.microbiologyresearch.org/content/journal/jgv/10.1099/jgv.0.000557