BACKGROUND: In the past decade, many new paramyxoviruses that do not belong to any of the seven established genera in the family Paramyxoviridae have been discovered. Amongst them are J-virus (JPV), Beilong virus (BeiPV) and Tailam virus (TlmPV), three paramyxovirus species found in rodents. Based on their similarities, it has been suggested that these viruses should compose a new genus, tentatively called 'Jeilongvirus'. RESULTS: Here we present the complete genomes of three newly discovered paramyxoviruses, one found in a bank vole (Myodes glareolus) from Slovenia and two in a single, co-infected Rungwe brush-furred rat (Lophuromys machangui) from Mozambique, that represent three new, separate species within the putative genus 'Jeilongvirus'. The genome organization of these viruses is similar to other paramyxoviruses, but like JPV, BeiPV and TlmPV, they possess an additional open reading frame, encoding a transmembrane protein, that is located between the F and G genes. As is the case for all Jeilongviruses, the G genes of the viruses described here are unusually large, and their encoded proteins are characterized by a remarkable amino acid composition pattern that is not seen in other paramyxoviruses, but resembles certain motifs found in Orthopneumovirus G proteins. CONCLUSIONS: The phylogenetic clustering of JPV, BeiPV and TlmPV with the viruses described here, as well as their shared features that set them apart from other paramyxoviruses, provide additional support for the recognition of the genus 'Jeilongvirus'.

Department of Biology Evolutionary Ecology Group University of Antwerp Universiteitsplein 1 2610 Antwerpen Belgium

Department of Microbiology and Immunology Laboratory of Clinical Virology Rega Institute for Medical Research KU Leuven University of Leuven Herestraat 49 Box 1040 BE3000 Leuven Belgium

Department of Microbiology and Immunology Laboratory of Evolutionary and Computational Virology Rega Institute for Medical Research KU Leuven University of Leuven Herestraat 49 Box 1040 BE3000 Leuven Belgium

Department of Microbiology and Immunology Laboratory of Evolutionary and Computational Virology Rega Institute for Medical Research KU Leuven University of Leuven Herestraat 49 Box 1040 BE3000 Leuven Belgium Department of Biology Evolutionary Ecology Group University of Antwerp Universiteitsplein 1 2610 Antwerpen Belgium Ecology and Evolutionary Biology Department University of Arizona 1041 E Lowell St Tucson AZ 85719 USA

Department of Microbiology and Immunology Laboratory of Viral Metagenomics Rega Institute for Medical Research KU Leuven University of Leuven Herestraat 49 Box 1040 BE3000 Leuven Belgium

Institute of Microbiology and Immunology Faculty of Medicine University of Ljubljana Zaloška 4 SI 1000 Ljubljana Slovenia

The Czech Academy of Sciences Institute of Vertebrate Biology Květná 8 603 65 Brno Czech Republic