This Article
Right arrow Full Text
Right arrow Full Text (PDF)
Right arrow Alert me when this article is cited
Right arrow Alert me if a correction is posted
Services
Right arrow Similar articles in this journal
Right arrow Similar articles in PubMed
Right arrow Alert me to new issues of the journal
Right arrow Download to citation manager
Right arrowReprints and Permissions
Right arrow Copyright Information
Right arrow Books from ASM Press
Right arrow MicrobeWorld
Citing Articles
Right arrow Citing Articles via HighWire
Right arrow Citing Articles via Google Scholar
Google Scholar
Right arrow Articles by Feuer, R.
Right arrow Articles by St. Jeor, S. C.
Right arrow Search for Related Content
PubMed
Right arrow PubMed Citation
Right arrow Articles by Feuer, R.
Right arrow Articles by St. Jeor, S. C.

 Previous Article  |  Next Article 

Journal of Virology, November 1999, p. 9544-9554, Vol. 73, No. 11
0022-538X/99/$04.00+0
Copyright © 1999, American Society for Microbiology. All rights reserved.

Temporal and Spatial Analysis of Sin Nombre Virus Quasispecies in Naturally Infected Rodents

Ralph Feuer, John D. Boone, Dale Netski, Sergey P. Morzunov, and Stephen C. St. Jeor*

Department of Microbiology, School of Medicine, University of Nevada, Reno, Reno, Nevada 89557

Received 17 May 1999/Accepted 22 July 1999

Sin Nombre virus (SNV) is thought to establish a persistent infection in its natural reservoir, the deer mouse (Peromyscus maniculatus), despite a strong host immune response. SNV-specific neutralizing antibodies were routinely detected in deer mice which maintained virus RNA in the blood and lungs. To determine whether viral diversity played a role in SNV persistence and immune escape in deer mice, we measured the prevalence of virus quasispecies in infected rodents over time in a natural setting. Mark-recapture studies provided serial blood samples from naturally infected deer mice, which were sequentially analyzed for SNV diversity. Viral RNA was detected over a period of months in these rodents in the presence of circulating antibodies specific for SNV. Nucleotide and amino acid substitutions were observed in viral clones from all time points analyzed, including changes in the immunodominant domain of glycoprotein 1 and the 3' small segment noncoding region of the genome. Viral RNA was also detected in seven different organs of sacrificed deer mice. Analysis of organ-specific viral clones revealed major disparities in the level of viral diversity between organs, specifically between the spleen (high diversity) and the lung and liver (low diversity). These results demonstrate the ability of SNV to mutate and generate quasispecies in vivo, which may have implications for viral persistence and possible escape from the host immune system.


* Corresponding author. Mailing address: Department of Microbiology, University of Nevada, Reno, Reno, NV 89557. Phone: (775) 784-4123. Fax: (775) 784-1620. E-mail: stjeor{at}med.unr.edu.


Journal of Virology, November 1999, p. 9544-9554, Vol. 73, No. 11
0022-538X/99/$04.00+0
Copyright © 1999, American Society for Microbiology. All rights reserved.



This article has been cited by other articles:

  • Ramsden, C., Holmes, E. C., Charleston, M. A. (2009). Hantavirus Evolution in Relation to Its Rodent and Insectivore Hosts: No Evidence for Codivergence. Mol Biol Evol 26: 143-153 [Abstract] [Full Text]  
  • Ramsden, C., Melo, F. L., Figueiredo, Luiz. M., Holmes, E. C., Zanotto, P. M.A., the VGDN Consortium, (2008). High Rates of Molecular Evolution in Hantaviruses. Mol Biol Evol 25: 1488-1492 [Abstract] [Full Text]  
  • Sironen, T., Kallio, E. R., Vaheri, A., Lundkvist, A., Plyusnin, A. (2008). Quasispecies dynamics and fixation of a synonymous mutation in hantavirus transmission. J. Gen. Virol. 89: 1309-1313 [Abstract] [Full Text]  
  • Jiang, J.-F., Zuo, S.-Q., Zhang, W.-Y., Wu, X.-M., Tang, F., De Vlas, S. J., Zhao, W.-J., Zhang, P.-H., Dun, Z., Wang, R.-M., Cao, W.-C. (2008). Prevalence and Genetic Diversities of Hantaviruses in Rodents in Beijing, China. Am J Trop Med Hyg 78: 98-105 [Abstract] [Full Text]  
  • Moore, M. L., Brown, C. C., Spindler, K. R. (2003). T Cells Cause Acute Immunopathology and Are Required for Long-Term Survival in Mouse Adenovirus Type 1-Induced Encephalomyelitis. J. Virol. 77: 10060-10070 [Abstract] [Full Text]  
  • Nemirov, K., Lundkvist, A., Vaheri, A., Plyusnin, A. (2003). Adaptation of Puumala Hantavirus to Cell Culture Is Associated with Point Mutations in the Coding Region of the L Segment and in the Noncoding Regions of the S Segment. J. Virol. 77: 8793-8800 [Abstract] [Full Text]  
  • Araki, K., Yoshimatsu, K., Lee, B.-H., Kariwa, H., Takashima, I., Arikawa, J. (2003). Hantavirus-Specific CD8+-T-Cell Responses in Newborn Mice Persistently Infected with Hantaan Virus. J. Virol. 77: 8408-8417 [Abstract] [Full Text]  
  • Botten, J., Mirowsky, K., Kusewitt, D., Ye, C., Gottlieb, K., Prescott, J., Hjelle, B. (2002). Persistent Sin Nombre Virus Infection in the Deer Mouse (Peromyscus maniculatus) Model: Sites of Replication and Strand-Specific Expression. J. Virol. 77: 1540-1550 [Abstract] [Full Text]  
  • Schneider, W. L., Roossinck, M. J. (2001). Genetic Diversity in RNA Virus Quasispecies Is Controlled by Host-Virus Interactions. J. Virol. 75: 6566-6571 [Abstract] [Full Text]