Genome analysis of Getah virus (GETV) isolated from a live swine vaccine: The commercial live vaccines might be a potential route for GETV transmission

We reported a GETV strain, named GETV-V1, was isolated from a commercial modified live vaccine (MLV) against porcine reproductive and respiratory syndrome virus (PRRSV), which is widely used on pigs in China. Further results showed that nine batches of MLV vaccine (three batches per year) from the same manufacturer between 2015 and 2017 were all positive for GETV. The complete genomes of the isolate were sequenced and it was found that the genomes of GETV-V1 had the highest similarities with a strain 16-I-674, which was isolated from the sick horses in Japan. This is the first report of GETV contaminant in live swine vaccine in China. Our finding demonstrates that vaccination of the commercial live vaccines might be contaminated and became a potential new route for GETV transmission in swine, pointing to the need for more extensive monitoring of the commercial live vaccines in China.