title: Hantavirus infection among Rattus norvegicus in Japan.
abstract: Seroepizootiological study of hantavirus infection among 393 urban rats (Rattus norvegicus) captured in six regions in Japan during the period from 1990 to 1994 was carried out by the indirect fluorescent antibody (IFA) test and Western blot (WB). Fifteen out of 393 (3.8%) rat sera were antibody-positive by IFA, i.e., Tokyo Port (12.8%, 6/47), Shimizu Port (5.7%, 2/35), Otaru Port (1.5%, 1/65) and Nagoya City (3.6%, 6/167). In two other regions, i.e., Kasai Seaside Park and Haneda Airport, rat sera were antibody-negative. One serum with a lower IFA titer, 1:64, from Otaru Port was confirmed to be antibody-positive by WB, while two sera from Shimizu Port (IFA titer, 1:32 and 1:64) were not. In Nagoya City, one out of four sera (IFA titer, 1:32) and one of two sera (IFA titer, 1:64) were also confirmed to be antibody-positive by WB. Continuous hantavirus infection among rats in Tokyo Port, Shimizu Port and Nagoya City and the existence of hantavirus among rats in Otaru Port were demonstrated.
authors.affiliation: Department of Virology I, National Institute of Health, Tokyo.
authors.forename: H B
authors.initials: HB
authors.lastname: Ma
authors.forename: K
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Sugiyama
authors.forename: S
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Morikawa
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Mizushima
authors.forename: J
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Kobayashi
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Yamamoto
authors.forename: T
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Yamada
authors.forename: Y
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Hayashi
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Shinagawa
authors.forename: H
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Senzaki
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D000914:Antibodies, Viral / Q000097:blood; D005455:Fluorescent Antibody Technique; D018778:Hantavirus Infections / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000662:veterinary*; D051381:Rats / Q000821:virology*; D012376:Rodent Diseases / Q000453:epidemiology*
chemical_list: D000914:Antibodies, Viral