Prevalence of Antibodies to Arenaviruses in Rodents from the Southern and Western United States: Evidence for an Arenavirus Associated with the Genus Neotoma

Michael Y. Kosoy Division of Viral and Rickettsial Diseases, National Center for Infectious Diseases, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Atlanta, Georgia

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Luanne H. Elliott Division of Viral and Rickettsial Diseases, National Center for Infectious Diseases, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Atlanta, Georgia

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Thomas G. Ksiazek Division of Viral and Rickettsial Diseases, National Center for Infectious Diseases, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Atlanta, Georgia

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Charles F. Fulhorst Division of Viral and Rickettsial Diseases, National Center for Infectious Diseases, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Atlanta, Georgia

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Pierre E. Rollin Division of Viral and Rickettsial Diseases, National Center for Infectious Diseases, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Atlanta, Georgia

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James E. Childs Division of Viral and Rickettsial Diseases, National Center for Infectious Diseases, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Atlanta, Georgia

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James N. Mills Division of Viral and Rickettsial Diseases, National Center for Infectious Diseases, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Atlanta, Georgia

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Gary O. Maupin Division of Viral and Rickettsial Diseases, National Center for Infectious Diseases, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Atlanta, Georgia

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C. J. Peters Division of Viral and Rickettsial Diseases, National Center for Infectious Diseases, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Atlanta, Georgia

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DOI:
https://doi.org/10.4269/ajtmh.1996.54.570
Volume/Issue:
Volume 54: Issue 6
Page(s):
570–576
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The objectives of this study were to extend our knowledge of the geographic distribution and rodent host range of arenaviruses in North America. Sera from wild rodents collected from the southern and western United States were tested for antibody against Tamiami, Pichinde, Junin, and lymphocytic choriomeningitis viruses, using an indirect fluorescent antibody test. Antibody to at least one arenavirus was found in 220 (3.1%) of 7,106 rodents tested. The antibody-positive animals included Mus musculus from Florida and Texas; Neotoma albigula from Arizona, Colorado, and New Mexico; N. fuscipes and N. lepida from California: N. mexicana from Arizona, New Mexico, and Utah; N. stephensi from Arizona and New Mexico; and Oryzomys palustris and Sigmodon hispidus from Florida. Sigmodon hispidus seropositive for Tamiami virus were found only in Florida (156 [27.0%] of 578 tested), although 463 hispid cotton rats from outside that state were examined. High-titered antibodies to Tamiami virus were present in sera from S. hispidus, (geometric mean antibody titer [GMAT] of 1:792), whereas sera from Neotoma spp. reacted at high titer to both Tamiami (GMAT = 1:905) and Pichinde (GMAT = 1:433) viruses. The results suggest that arenaviruses are widely distributed in the southern United States and that one or more indigenous arenaviruses are associated with Neotoma spp. in North America.
Published Online:
Jun 1996
Cover The American Journal of Tropical Medicine and Hygiene
The American Journal of Tropical Medicine and Hygiene
Print ISSN:
0002-9637
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