Antibody Seroprevalence to Hantaviruses in Rodents from Reserva De La Biosfera Sierra De Huautla, Morelos

• Published in: Western North American naturalist Vol. 72; no. 1; pp. 105 - 109
• Main Authors: Arellano, Elizabeth, Castro-Arellano, Iván, Suzán, Gerardo, González-Cózatl, Francisco X., Jiménez, Ricardo Morales
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Provo Brigham Young University 01.04.2012; Western North American Naturalist
• Subjects: Antibodies; Antigens; Blood; Deciduous forests; Distribution; Genetic aspects; Hantavirus; Hantavirus infections; Hantavirus pulmonary syndrome; Hantaviruses; Health aspects; Identification and classification; Immune system; Immunoglobulin G; Infectious diseases; Liomys irroratus; Mammals; Mice; Mortality; Proteins; Rodents; Species; Tropical forests; Viruses; Mexico; Morelos Mexico
• ISSN: 1527-0904; 1944-8341
• DOI: 10.3398/064.072.0114

Hantavirus pulmonary syndrome (HPS) is a rare disease with a high mortality rate, caused by New World viral species of the genus Hantavirus. The presence of hantaviruses both north and south of Mexico suggests an extended presence through the country. Our objective was to conduct serologic tests to detect antibodies against hantaviruses in wild rodents of the tropical deciduous forest in Morelos, Mexico, and to report information about the distribution and prevalence of these viruses. Blood samples from 153 cricetid and heteromyid rodents were tested for immunoglobulin G (IgG) antibodies. One individual of Liomys irroratus was seropositive for a Hantavirus antigen. Our results suggest that hantaviruses occur in rodents from southern Morelos in central Mexico. Given the possibility of a false positive result, it is important that this finding be validated with further research.