Identification of Distinct Rodent-Associated Adenovirus Lineages from Mixed-Use Landscape

Land-use change and increased human–livestock–wildlife interactions have generated numerous possibilities for viral spillover, demanding enhanced surveillance in biodiverse regions. We investigated adenovirus diversity in small mammals, an understudied host taxon, from a forest-plantation mosaic in the Western Ghats biodiversity hotspot. We observed high prevalence (up to 39.39%) and identified five lineages of adenoviruses with unique mutations in the dominant small mammal species, Rattus satarae. These lineages significantly differed from other known murine adenoviruses (p-distance > 25%), indicating the likelihood of novel adenoviruses in this endemic small mammal and suggesting potential for unexplored DNA virus diversity in the region.