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Genetic diversity and distribution of Peromyscus-borne hantaviruses in North America

M C Monroe1, S P Morzunov, A M Johnson

  • 1Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Atlanta, Georgia 30333, USA.

Emerging Infectious Diseases
|March 19, 1999
PubMed

Insights

Sin Nombre virus (SNV) causes hantavirus pulmonary syndrome (HPS) in North America, primarily from deer mice. Phylogenetic analysis reveals widespread SNV-like hantaviruses in rodents, indicating complex host-virus evolution.

Area of Science:

  • Virology
  • Genetics
  • Epidemiology

Background:

  • The 1993 hantavirus pulmonary syndrome (HPS) outbreak in the southwestern US was linked to Sin Nombre virus (SNV).
  • SNV, a rodent-borne hantavirus, primarily infects deer mice (Peromyscus maniculatus).
  • Hantavirus-infected rodents have been found across North America.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To investigate the distribution and genetic relationships of SNV-like hantaviruses in North American rodents.
  • To understand the evolutionary dynamics between hantaviruses and their rodent hosts.

Main Methods:

  • Amplification of a 139 bp fragment from the M genomic segment of hantaviruses.
  • Generation of an extensive nucleotide sequence database.
  • Phylogenetic analysis of obtained sequences.

Main Results:

  • Phylogenetic analysis confirmed the wide distribution of SNV-like hantaviruses in Peromyscus species rodents throughout North America.
  • Classic SNV is the primary cause of HPS in North America, with other Peromyscine-borne hantaviruses (e.g., New York, Monongahela viruses) also associated with HPS cases.
  • SNV-like viruses exhibit genetic diversity and appear to have coevolved with their rodent hosts.

Conclusions:

  • Hantavirus genetic relationships in the Americas are complex.
  • This complexity likely results from the rapid diversification of New World sigmodontine rodents and instances of virus-host switching.

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