HOME HELP FEEDBACK SUBSCRIPTIONS ARCHIVE SEARCH TABLE OF CONTENTS		QUICK SEARCH:   [advanced] Author: Keyword(s): Year:  Vol:  Page:

This Article Full Text (PDF) Alert me when this article is cited Alert me if a correction is posted Services Similar articles in this journal Similar articles in PubMed Alert me to new issues of the journal Download to citation manager Citing Articles Citing Articles via HighWire Citing Articles via Google Scholar Google Scholar Articles by Childs, J. E. Articles by LeDuc, J. W. Search for Related Content PubMed PubMed Citation Articles by Childs, J. E. Articles by LeDuc, J. W.

Prospective Seroepidemiology of Hantaviruses and Population Dynamics of Small Mammal Communities of Baltimore, Maryland

James E. Childs^*, Gregory E. Glass^*, George W. Korch^* AND James W. LeDuc

^* Department of Immunology and Infectious Diseases, The Johns Hopkins University School of Hygiene and Public Health, 615 N. Wolfe Street, Baltimore, Maryland 21205
Department of Epidemiology, U.S. Army Medical Research Institute of Infectious Diseases, Fort Detrick, Frederick, Maryland 21701

We used a prospective seroepidemiological study, in conjunction with a mark-release-recapture protocol, to investigate the transmission of hantaviruses in four rodent species from Baltimore, Maryland, from June 1984 to June 1986. A total of 1,208 captures of 762 rodents provided 984 individual blood samples. The antibody prevalence, as determined by frequency of reciprocal indirect fluorescent antibody (IFA) titers 32, was 33.9% in rats (Rattus norvegicus, n = 466), 28.3% in meadow voles (Microtus pennsylvanicus, n = 67), 1.4% in house mice (Mus musculus, n = 146), and 1.2% in white-footed mice (Peromyscus leucopus, n = 83). Populations of all rodents were maximal during the fall and winter months, but population trends were not clearly associated with periods of virus transmission. The mean incidence of seroconversion to a Hantavirus for rats was 12.06/100 rats/month, but incidence rates could not be established for other species. Rats which seroconverted were generally sexually mature animals, and there was evidence of transmission throughout the year. Animals which seroconverted to a Hantavirus achieved high IFA titers, and remained seropositive for the duration of the study.

Accepted for publication April 3, 1987.

This article has been cited by other articles:

				R. J. Douglass, C. H. Calisher, K. D. Wagoner, and J. N. Mills SIN NOMBRE VIRUS INFECTION OF DEER MICE IN MONTANA: CHARACTERISTICS OF NEWLY INFECTED MICE, INCIDENCE, AND TEMPORAL PATTERN OF INFECTION J. Wildl. Dis., January 1, 2007; 43(1): 12 - 22. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]