Identification and characterization of the genome of a papillomavirus from skin lesions of four-toed hedgehogs ( Atelerix albiventris )

The present study describes the clinical and pathological characteristics of skin lesions in two four-toed hedgehogs ( Atelerix albiventris ). We performed inverse PCR to identify the genome of papillomavirus (PV) in the skin lesions and subsequently sequenced the full genome of the virus, which was tentatively named Atelerix albiventris papillomavirus 1 (AalbPV1). The overall sequences of the viral genomes of both four-toed hedgehogs were identical. This study first identified the presence of a novel PV in Japanese four-toed hedgehogs and provided genetic information about this virus.