What is it about?
Hantavirus, transmitted by rodents, is a serious disease. There is still no vaccine or specific treatment. Knowing which rodent species transmit it and which variants of the virus exist is part of prevention. Here we present the identification of a new hantavirus and a new species of rodent carrier.
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Photo by Patrick Fore on Unsplash
Why is it important?
Hantavirus variants are still emerging today: new viruses and new hosts are being described. This work contributes to the updating of a hantavirus risk map in Argentina. Knowing the geographical distribution and characteristics of these emerging viruses is key information to prevent transmission to humans.
Perspectives
This work is the result of interdisciplinary collaboration between ecologists, epidemiologists and molecular biologists. It builds in part upon a previous study and this is important because it maximises the results obtained from intervention in a natural environment. It is an example of how many useful and multiple results can be obtained from a single action.
Carla Bellomo
INEI-ANLIS "Dr. C. G. Malbrán"
Read the Original
This page is a summary of: Emerging hantaviruses in Central Argentina: First case of Hantavirus Pulmonary Syndrome caused by Alto Paraguay virus, and a novel orthohantavirus in Scapteromys aquaticus rodent, PLoS Neglected Tropical Diseases, November 2021, PLOS,
DOI: 10.1371/journal.pntd.0009842.
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Contributors
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