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Introduction: Physical and non-physical processes that occur in nature may influence biological processes, such as dissemination of infectious diseases. However, such processes may be hard to detect when they are complex systems. Because complexity is a dynamic and non-linear interaction among numerous elements and structural levels in which specific effects are not necessarily linked to any one specific element, cause-effect connections are rarely or poorly observed. Methods: To test this hypothesis, the complex and dynamic properties of geo-biological data were explored with high-resolution epidemiological data collected in the 2001 Uruguayan foot-and-mouth disease (FMD) epizootic that mainly affected cattle. County-level data on cases, farm density, road density, river density, and the ratio of road (or river) length/county perimeter were analyzed with an open-ended procedure that identified geographical clustering in the first 11 epidemic weeks. Two questions were asked: (i) do geo-referenced epidemiologic data display complex properties? and (ii) can such properties facilitate or prevent disease dissemination? Results: Emergent patterns were detected when complex data structures were analyzed, which were not observed when variables were assessed individually. Complex properties-including data circularity-were demonstrated. The emergent patterns helped identify 11 counties as 'disseminators' or 'facilitators' (F) and 264 counties as 'barriers' (B) of epidemic spread. In the early epidemic phase, F and B counties differed in terms of road density and FMD case density. Focusing on non-biological, geographical data, a second analysis indicated that complex relationships may identify B-like counties even before epidemics occur. Discussion: Geographical barriers and/or promoters of disease dispersal may precede the introduction of emerging pathogens. If corroborated, the analysis of geo-referenced complexity may support anticipatory epidemiological policies.
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Growing evidence demonstrates that bacterial species diversity is substantial, and many of these species are pathogenic in some contexts or hosts. At the same time, laboratories and museums have collected valuable animal tissue and ectoparasite samples that may contain substantial novel information on bacterial prevalence and diversity. However, the identification of bacterial species is challenging, partly due to the difficulty in culturing many microbes and the reliance on molecular data. Although the genomics revolution will surely add to our knowledge of bacterial systematics, these approaches are not accessible to all researchers and rely predominantly on cultured isolates. Thus, there is a need for comprehensive molecular analyses capable of accurately genotyping bacteria from animal tissues or ectoparasites using common methods that will facilitate large-scale comparisons of species diversity and prevalence. To illustrate the challenges of genotyping bacteria, we focus on the genus Bartonella, vector-borne bacteria common in mammals. We highlight the value and limitations of commonly used techniques for genotyping bartonellae and make recommendations for researchers interested in studying the diversity of these bacteria in various samples. Our recommendations could be applicable to many bacterial taxa (with some modifications) and could lead to a more complete understanding of bacterial species diversity.
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Bartonella/genética , Técnicas de Genotipaje , Animales , Artrópodos , Bartonella/clasificación , Variación Genética , Mamíferos , Metagenómica , ARN Ribosómico 16S/genética , Secuenciación Completa del GenomaRESUMEN
The host-parasite-vector relationship of Bartonella spp. system in wild carnivores and their fleas from northwestern Mexico was investigated. Sixty-six carnivores belonging to eight species were sampled, and 285 fleas belonging to three species were collected during spring (April-May) and fall (October-November) seasons. We detected Bartonella species in 7 carnivores (10.6%) and 27 fleas (9.5%) through either blood culture or PCR. Of the 27 Bartonella-positive fleas, twenty-two were Pulex simulans, three were Pulex irritans and one was Echidnophaga gallinacea. The gltA gene and ITS region sequences alignment revealed six and eight genetic variants of Bartonella spp., respectively. These variants were clustered into Bartonella rochalimae, Bartonella vinsonii subsp. berkhoffii and another genotype, which likely represents a novel species of Bartonella spp. Although experimental infection studies are required to prove the vector role of P. simulans, our results suggest that this flea may play an important role in the Bartonella transmission. The results indicated possible host-specific relationships between Bartonella genotypes and the families of the carnivores, but further studies are needed to verify this finding. The presence of zoonotic species of Bartonella spp. in wild carnivores raises the issue of their potential risk for humans in fragmented ecosystems.
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Infecciones por Bartonella/veterinaria , Bartonella/clasificación , Carnívoros/microbiología , Carnívoros/parasitología , Filogenia , Siphonaptera/clasificación , Animales , Bartonella/aislamiento & purificación , Genes Bacterianos , Humanos , México , PrevalenciaRESUMEN
The paper reviews the significance of rats of the genus Rattus as hosts for zoogenous infections in a genus formation area (Southeast Asia) as compared to the invasion part of the genus area. The rats of the genus Rattus and their related disease agents are shown to be a uniqe model for the formation and development of a host-pathogen system. In the modern period of urbanization growth, the rats are among few species of warm-blooded vectors that can maintain the anthropurgic foci of feral nidal infections in the cities and towns and transmit their pathogens to the urban population. There are all prerequisites for the high activity of these foci in the native area of rats. By having settled, the rats have carried infectious agents outside this area along all continents in historical times. During invasions, the rats have become carriers of many other infections.
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Infecciones Bacterianas/epidemiología , Reservorios de Enfermedades/veterinaria , Virosis/epidemiología , Zoonosis/epidemiología , Migración Animal/fisiología , Animales , Asia Sudoriental/epidemiología , Infecciones Bacterianas/microbiología , Ciudades , Reservorios de Enfermedades/microbiología , Reservorios de Enfermedades/virología , Interacciones Huésped-Patógeno , Humanos , Ratas , Federación de Rusia/epidemiología , Población Urbana , Virosis/virología , Zoonosis/microbiología , Zoonosis/virologíaRESUMEN
In the present study, we investigated 238 fleas collected from cats and dogs in three regions of Peru (Ancash, Cajamarca, and Lima) for the presence of Bartonella DNA. Bartonella spp. were detected by amplification of the citrate synthase gene (16.4%) and the 16S-23S intergenic spacer region (20.6%). Bartonella rochalimae was the most common species detected followed by Bartonella clarridgeiae and Bartonella henselae. Our results demonstrate that dogs and cats in Peru are infested with fleas harboring zoonotic Bartonella spp. and these infected fleas could pose a disease risk for humans.
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Bartonella/aislamiento & purificación , Gatos/parasitología , Perros/parasitología , Siphonaptera/microbiología , Animales , PerúRESUMEN
To date no experimental infection studies have been conducted in laboratory mice using Mus spp. bartonella strains. Therefore we designed a study to evaluate the in vivo infection characteristics of 2 Bartonella tribocorum strains from wild Mus spp. in laboratory mice with the aim of developing a mouse model that reproduces characteristics of naturally acquired bartonella infections in rodents. Groups of outbred CD1 female mice were subcutaneously inoculated with low doses of 2 mouse bartonella strains (10, 100, and 1000 bacteria/mouse). Blood was collected weekly for 27 weeks to evaluate bacteraemia kinetics in infected mice. Mouse urine collected during weeks 3-6 post-inoculation was also tested for viable bacteria to determine whether urine might serve as a source of bacterial transmission. Mice were susceptible to infection with both strains. Bacteraemias in mice lasted up to 25 weeks, sometimes with abacteraemic intervals, and achieved levels up to 107 cfu/ml of blood. Temporal lags in bacteraemia onset of up to 19 weeks in length were noted at different inoculum doses. No viable bacteria were detected in mouse urine. Bacteraemic mice displayed characteristics of infection similar to those observed in natural rodent hosts during longitudinal field studies. This mouse model of persistent bacteraemia should be suitable for a variety of experimental uses.
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Infecciones por Bartonella/transmisión , Modelos Animales de Enfermedad , Enfermedades de los Roedores/transmisión , Animales , Bacteriemia/patología , Bartonella/fisiología , Infecciones por Bartonella/patología , Femenino , Ratones , Ratones Endogámicos ICR , Enfermedades de los Roedores/patología , Orina/microbiologíaRESUMEN
Bat flies are obligate ectoparasites of bats and it has been hypothesized that they may be involved in the transmission of Bartonella species between bats. A survey was conducted to identify whether Cyclopodia greefi greefi (Diptera: Nycteribiidae) collected from Ghana and 2 islands in the Gulf of Guinea harbour Bartonella. In total, 137 adult flies removed from Eidolon helvum, the straw-coloured fruit bat, were screened for the presence of Bartonella by culture and PCR analysis. Bartonella DNA was detected in 91 (66·4%) of the specimens examined and 1 strain of a Bartonella sp., initially identified in E. helvum blood from Kenya, was obtained from a bat fly collected in Ghana. This is the first study, to our knowledge, to report the identification and isolation of Bartonella in bat flies from western Africa.
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Infecciones por Bartonella/veterinaria , Bartonella/genética , Quirópteros/microbiología , Dípteros/microbiología , África Occidental/epidemiología , Secuencia de Aminoácidos , Animales , Técnicas de Tipificación Bacteriana , Bartonella/aislamiento & purificación , Infecciones por Bartonella/epidemiología , Infecciones por Bartonella/microbiología , Infecciones por Bartonella/transmisión , Infestaciones Ectoparasitarias/microbiología , Insectos Vectores , Datos de Secuencia Molecular , Filogenia , Filogeografía , Reacción en Cadena de la Polimerasa , PrevalenciaRESUMEN
We describe the temporal dynamics and spatial distribution of Bartonella in black-tailed prairie dogs (Cynomys ludovicianus) based on a longitudinal study conducted in 20 black-tailed prairie dog (BTPD) colonies in Boulder County, CO from 2003 to 2005. Bartonella infection was widely distributed in all colonies with an overall prevalence of 23.1%, but varied by colony from 4.8% to 42.5% and by year from 9.1 to 39.0%, with a marked increase in Bartonella activity in 2005. Levels of bacteremia varied from 40 to 12,000 colony forming units (CFU) per milliliter of BTPD blood, but were highly skewed with a median of 240 CFU. Bartonella infection rates were unimodal with respect to BTPD body mass, first increasing among growing juveniles, then declining among adults. Infection rates exhibited a sigmoidal response to body mass, such that 700g may prove to be a useful threshold value to evaluate the likelihood of Bartonella infection in BTPDs. Bartonella prevalence increased throughout the testing season for each year, as newly emerged juveniles developed bacteremia. Data from recaptured animals suggest that Bartonella infections did not persist in individual BTPDs, which may explain the relatively low prevalence of Bartonella in BTPDs compared to other rodent species. No association was found between Bartonella prevalence and host population density. Prevalence did not differ between males and females. The spatio-temporal pattern of Bartonella infection among colonies suggests epizootic spread from northern to central and southern portions of the study area. The potential significance of the BTPD-associated Bartonella for public health needs to be further investigated.
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Animales Salvajes , Bacteriemia/veterinaria , Infecciones por Bartonella/veterinaria , Bartonella/aislamiento & purificación , Enfermedades de los Roedores/epidemiología , Sciuridae , Animales , Animales Salvajes/microbiología , Animales Salvajes/fisiología , Bacteriemia/epidemiología , Bacteriemia/microbiología , Bartonella/clasificación , Bartonella/genética , Infecciones por Bartonella/epidemiología , Infecciones por Bartonella/microbiología , Índice de Masa Corporal , Colorado/epidemiología , Femenino , Interacciones Huésped-Patógeno , Masculino , Densidad de Población , Prevalencia , Enfermedades de los Roedores/microbiología , Sciuridae/microbiología , Sciuridae/fisiología , Estaciones del AñoRESUMEN
The primer systems for the PCR detection of four house-keeping genes of bartonellae in clinical material were developed and tested. The tactics of the species RFLP typing was also developed and tested. The scheme of the species RFLP typing of bartonellae was tested using as an example two strains for the first time isolated in Russia from patients with endocarditis and fever of uncertain origin. The results of the typing were supported by sequencing of the amplicons obtained. According to the sequencing the isolates were attributed to the sub species Bartonella vinsonii, subsp. arupensis. The necessity of molecular epidemiological analysis of bartonelloses in Russia was substantiated.
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Técnicas de Tipificación Bacteriana , Bartonella/clasificación , Biología Molecular/métodos , Reacción en Cadena de la Polimerasa/métodos , Polimorfismo de Longitud del Fragmento de Restricción , Bartonella/genética , ADN Bacteriano/análisis , ADN Bacteriano/genética , Genes Bacterianos , FilogeniaRESUMEN
Norway rats (Rattus norvegicus) carry several zoonotic pathogens and because rats and humans live in close proximity in urban environments, there exists potential for transmission. To identify zoonotic agents carried by rats in Baltimore, Maryland, USA, we live-trapped 201 rats during 2005-2006 and screened them for a panel of viruses, bacteria, and parasites. Antibodies against Seoul virus (57.7%), hepatitis E virus (HEV, 73.5%), Leptospira interrogans (65.3%), Bartonella elizabethae (34.1%), and Rickettsia typhi (7.0%) were detected in Norway rats. Endoparasites, including Calodium hepatica (87.9%) and Hymenolepis sp. (34.4%), and ectoparasites (13.9%, primarily Laelaps echidninus) also were present. The risk of human exposure to these pathogens is a significant public health concern. Because these pathogens cause non-specific and often self-limiting symptoms in humans, infection in human populations is probably underdiagnosed.
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Reservorios de Enfermedades/veterinaria , Ratas/microbiología , Salud Urbana , Zoonosis/epidemiología , Zoonosis/transmisión , Animales , Anticuerpos Antibacterianos/sangre , Anticuerpos Antiprotozoarios/sangre , Anticuerpos Antivirales/sangre , Baltimore , Vectores de Enfermedades , Femenino , Humanos , Masculino , Prevalencia , Salud Pública , Estaciones del AñoRESUMEN
A large number of Bartonella species and genetic variants were compared for their ability to cause bacteremia in different rodent species: the cotton rat (Sigmodon hispidus), white-footed mouse (Peromyscus leucopus), BALB/c mouse and Wistar rat. Experimental data supported field observations that host specificity can occur among certain Bartonella species and rodent species. Bacteremia could only be readily produced in cotton rats or white-footed mice if the strains used for inoculation were originally obtained from the same species or from a phylogenetically close species. A few Bartonella colonies could be observed in the blood of some BALB/c mice by 7 days after inoculation, but no evidence of the persistence of the infection was found. Host specificity suggests the possibility of a long co-speciation of Bartonella species with their rodent hosts. Host-parasite relationships measured by the duration and level of bacteremia and the minimal infectious dose may serve as additional criteria for classification of Bartonella isolates obtained from natural environments.
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Bacteriemia/veterinaria , Infecciones por Bartonella/veterinaria , Bartonella/patogenicidad , Filogenia , Enfermedades de los Roedores/microbiología , Animales , Bacteriemia/microbiología , Bartonella/clasificación , Bartonella/genética , Infecciones por Bartonella/sangre , Infecciones por Bartonella/microbiología , ADN Bacteriano/química , ADN Bacteriano/aislamiento & purificación , Ratones , Ratones Endogámicos BALB C/microbiología , Peromyscus/microbiología , Reacción en Cadena de la Polimerasa/veterinaria , Ratas , Ratas Wistar/microbiología , Enfermedades de los Roedores/sangre , Análisis de Secuencia de ADN , Sigmodontinae/microbiología , Especificidad de la Especie , Organismos Libres de Patógenos EspecíficosRESUMEN
The recent identification of antibody to hepatitis E virus (HEV) in pigs, sheep, and cattle and characterization of an HEV isolated from domestic pigs suggest animal reservoirs for this virus. To investigate whether rodents might be a natural reservoir of HEV, the prevalence of anti-HEV was determined among a variety of species throughout the United States. Serum samples were obtained from 806 rodents of 26 species in 15 genera. Anti-HEV prevalence was assessed by 2 EIAs (mosaic protein- and 55-kDa protein-based), which gave concordant results. The highest prevalence of antibody was found in the genus Rattus (59.7%; 166/278). Overall, rodents from urban habitats had a significantly higher prevalence of anti-HEV than did animals captured from rural areas. A high prevalence of anti-HEV was found in animals captured on mainland versus barrier islands. The results from this study provide convincing evidence of widespread HEV or HEV-like infection in rodents of the United States.
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Anticuerpos Antihepatitis/sangre , Virus de la Hepatitis E/inmunología , Hepatitis E/veterinaria , Enfermedades de los Roedores/epidemiología , Animales , Reservorios de Enfermedades , Antígenos de la Hepatitis/genética , Antígenos de la Hepatitis/inmunología , Hepatitis E/epidemiología , Hepatitis E/inmunología , Immunoblotting , Prevalencia , Ratas , Proteínas Recombinantes/inmunología , Enfermedades de los Roedores/virología , Roedores/inmunología , Estados Unidos/epidemiologíaRESUMEN
Humans inhabiting the Old World and New World share a wide variety of pathogens. Processes that result in the disjunct biogeographic distribution of pathogens with common vertebrate reservoirs or vectors are more difficult to unravel than those influencing the distribution of infections spread only through human-to-human transmission. The origins of species and complexes of tick-borne bacteria are unclear. The agent of Lyme borreliosis may have speciated in the New World following geographical isolation of ticks harboring ancestral spirochetes; the subsequent spread to Europe of B. burgdorferi sensu stricto may have occurred within historical times. Other tick-borne agents, such as the ehrlichiae causing human granulocytic ehrlichiosis, are genetically very similar in the Old World and New World. As the taxonomic distinctions among these related agents of human and veterinary importance appear increasingly blurred, the processes leading to the current discontinuous geographic distributions will also become the source of continuing speculation. Accumulating data suggest an Old World origin for a group of bacteria that include B. elizabethae, a human pathogen first identified from the New World. The potential public health significance of these newly described organisms is undefined, but of international interest as their vertebrate reservoir has been introduced throughout the world.
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Vectores de Enfermedades , Zoonosis/transmisión , Animales , Bartonella/clasificación , Bartonella/genética , Infecciones por Bartonella/transmisión , Ehrlichia/clasificación , Ehrlichia/genética , Ehrlichiosis/transmisión , Geografía , Humanos , Enfermedad de Lyme/transmisión , Filogenia , Enfermedades por Picaduras de Garrapatas/transmisiónRESUMEN
The kinetics of infection and humoral immune response of laboratory-bred cotton rats (Sigmodon hispidus) challenged with three Bartonella spp. recovered from the blood of naturally infected cotton rats captured in Georgia (USA) are described. Bartonella spp. infection, as determined by bacteremia, occurred in all 18 cotton rats inoculated with live Bartonella of each species at either a low dose, 10(3) colony-forming units (CFU's), or high dose, 10(7) CFU. Cotton rats inoculated with lower doses of Bartonella spp. developed higher bacteremia that persisted for longer periods than in those inoculated with high doses. Peak bacteremia varied among Bartonella spp, ranging from 10(4) to 10(6) CFUs per 1.0 ml of blood. Antibody measured by immunofluorescence assays using species-specific antigens indicated more rapidly rising and higher antibody titers in cotton rats challenged with high doses vs. low doses and with inactivated bacteria vs. live bacteria. Each group of rats produced high IgG titers to the homologous challenge antigen; low or unmeasurable cross-reactivity was detected to heterologous Bartonella antigens. Exposure of cotton rats to a specific Bartonella sp. resulted in protection, as measured by detectable bacteremia, in eight of nine animals challenged with the same Bartonella sp. used initially; no evidence of resistance to secondary challenge with different Bartonella spp. was obtained. Cross-protection between Bartonella spp., isolated from the same rodent species, may not occur.
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Bacteriemia/veterinaria , Infecciones por Bartonella/veterinaria , Bartonella/fisiología , Enfermedades de los Roedores/microbiología , Sigmodontinae , Animales , Anticuerpos Antibacterianos/biosíntesis , Bacteriemia/inmunología , Bacteriemia/microbiología , Bartonella/inmunología , Infecciones por Bartonella/inmunología , Infecciones por Bartonella/microbiología , Modelos Animales de Enfermedad , Femenino , Masculino , Enfermedades de los Roedores/inmunologíaRESUMEN
Embryos and neonatal offspring of wild-captured cotton rats (Sigmodon hispidus) and white-footed mice (Peromyscus leucopus) were tested for the presence of Bartonella spp. Isolates of Bartonella spp. were obtained from 18 of 31 embryos and 7 of 19 neonates from bacteremic dams of the two species; no isolates were obtained from material from non-bacteremic dams. Sequence analysis demonstrated that the isolates from embryos and neonates matched the phylogenetic group of Bartonella spp. isolates obtained from the mother. No antibodies to homologous Bartonella spp. antigens were detected in maternal and neonatal blood or embryonic tissue. These findings suggest the possibility of vertical transmission of Bartonella spp. among natural rodent hosts.
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Animales Recién Nacidos/microbiología , Infecciones por Bartonella/veterinaria , Bartonella/aislamiento & purificación , Peromyscus/microbiología , Enfermedades de los Roedores/microbiología , Sigmodontinae/microbiología , Animales , Anticuerpos Antibacterianos/sangre , Bacteriemia/embriología , Bacteriemia/microbiología , Bacteriemia/veterinaria , Bartonella/clasificación , Bartonella/inmunología , Infecciones por Bartonella/embriología , Infecciones por Bartonella/microbiología , Infecciones por Bartonella/transmisión , Citrato (si)-Sintasa/genética , Recuento de Colonia Microbiana/veterinaria , Embrión de Mamíferos/microbiología , Femenino , Enfermedades Fetales/embriología , Enfermedades Fetales/microbiología , Enfermedades Fetales/veterinaria , Transmisión Vertical de Enfermedad Infecciosa , Peromyscus/embriología , Filogenia , Placenta/microbiología , Embarazo , Complicaciones Infecciosas del Embarazo/microbiología , Enfermedades de los Roedores/embriología , Enfermedades de los Roedores/transmisión , Sigmodontinae/embriologíaRESUMEN
A number of Bartonella isolates were obtained from seven species of rodents sampled from 12 geographic sites representing the major biotic communities of the southeastern United States. Bartonella were isolated from the blood of 42.2% of 279 tested rodents. The highest prevalence of infection typically occurred among the most commonly captured species in the rodent community. Four phylogenetic groups, uniting 14 genotypic variants of Bartonella, were identified by sequence analysis of the citrate synthase gene. The level of sequence homology between genotypic groups varied from 88.8% to 96.4%, and the degree of homology among variants within groups was > or = 97%. Cotton rats (Sigmodon hispidus) harbored up to three phylogenetic groups of Bartonella at a single site, and Bartonella of two phylogenetic groups were isolated from a single rodent. All the Bartonella isolated from three species of Peromyscus clustered in a single distinct phylogenetic group, suggesting some host specificity may occur. Mouse ascitic fluids produced in BALB/c mice inoculated with Bartonella of three phylogenetic groups demonstrated high indirect fluorescent antibody (IFA) titers to homologous antigens. However, use of eight Bartonella antigens in an IFA test with sera from 394 wild-caught rodents resulted in either little or extremely low titers of antibody.
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Bartonella/aislamiento & purificación , Roedores/microbiología , Animales , Anticuerpos Antibacterianos/sangre , Bacteriemia/veterinaria , Bartonella/clasificación , Genotipo , Ratones , Filogenia , Ratas , Estados UnidosRESUMEN
The results of an extensive rodent trapping effort throughout the southern part of far eastern Russia and hantavirus antigen screening of tissues were used to develop a multifaceted approach for the geographic division of the enzootic territory of hantavirus. Four species of rodents (Apodemus agrarius, Apodemus peninsulae, Microtus fortis, and Clethrionomys rufocanus) comprised 88.5 percent of 10,595 captured rodents and 94.1 percent of 996 antigen-positive animals. Rodent fauna and the prevalence and distribution of hantavirus antigen-positive animals were compared among major biotic communities in the region. The species composition of the rodent communities and the predominant hantavirus reservoir species were used as criteria to define zones with similar enzootic characteristics.
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Infecciones por Hantavirus/veterinaria , Enfermedades de los Roedores/epidemiología , Animales , Animales Salvajes , Antígenos Virales/análisis , Arvicolinae/virología , Reservorios de Enfermedades , Infecciones por Hantavirus/epidemiología , Infecciones por Hantavirus/virología , Muridae/virología , Prevalencia , Enfermedades de los Roedores/virología , Federación de Rusia/epidemiologíaRESUMEN
Rodents are principal hosts for each of the well-characterized arenaviruses. Prior to the present study, Tamiami (TAM) virus was the sole arenavirus known to be indigenous to North America; it has been isolated only from southern Florida where its primary host is the cotton rat Sigmodon hispidus. Recently, arenavirus antibody was found in Neotoma albigula woodrats collected from the southwestern United States. The purpose of the present study was to isolate and characterize the arenavirus associated with N. albigula. Three isolates of a novel arenavirus (proposed name "Whitewater Arroyo," WWA) were recovered from two arenavirus antibody-positive N. albigula collected from Whitewater Arroyo in McKinley County, New Mexico. Two-way serologic tests indicated that WWA virus is antigenically distinct from other arenaviruses but most closely related to TAM virus. Phylogenetic analysis of nucleocapsid protein gene sequence data showed that WWA virus is a novel arenavirus that is genetically most closely related to TAM virus. The recovery of WWA virus from antibody-positive N. albigula suggests that WWA virus infection in this species can be chronic and thus that N. albigula is a reservoir host of the virus.
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Arenavirus/aislamiento & purificación , Sigmodontinae/virología , Animales , Arenavirus/clasificación , Arenavirus/genética , Arenavirus/inmunología , Secuencia de Bases , ADN Viral , Ensayo de Inmunoadsorción Enzimática , Genoma Viral , Datos de Secuencia Molecular , América del Norte , FilogeniaRESUMEN
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.