Rachel Tarlinton from the University of Nottingham in the UK presented at London Calling 2019 on “Retroviral invasion of the koala genome.” Tarlinton spoke about the geographic and dietary features of koalas. Koalas live most of their lives on top of trees. In the 1800s and early 1900s, Southern koalas in Australia were almost wiped out. The current numbers range between 40,000 and 400,000. Interestingly, some animals have been moved to islands to control the population. Koalas in the northern parts of Australia may eat themselves out of their homes and die. Koalas do contract infections, including urogenital disease and leukemia. Stress and immunosuppression contribute to susceptibility to infection. Tarlinton noted that the koala populations have a high incidence of leukemia. Retroviruses have been found that may affect cancer rates. The koala retrovirus A is an endogenous virus in the koala population. Genomic analyses have revealed that the Koala Retrovirus A has recently entered the population. Interestingly, the virus can be propagated in experiments. Genetic variation of the virus has revealed differences in virus type and disease. Tarlinton shared data on virus sequencing. They will re-sequence a koala genome that died. Using directed sequencing, they will enrich for retroviral reads. Sequencing on a PromethION flow cell identified regions not in the reference genome. This session was packed with fascinating information about koalas and their disease susceptibility!
