title: Genetic characterization of hantaviruses isolated from rodents in the port cities of Heilongjiang, China, in 2014.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Hantavirus is a tripartite negative-sense RNA virus. It can infect humans through contaminated rodent excreta and causes two types of fatal human diseases: hemorrhagic fever with renal syndrome (HFRS) and hantavirus pulmonary syndrome (HPS). China exhibits the highest HFRS occurrence rate in the world, and the Heilongjiang area is one of the most severely infected regions.
  
  
  RESULTS
  To obtain additional insights into the genetic characteristics of hantaviruses in the port cities of the Heilongjiang area in China, a molecular epidemiological investigation of hantaviruses isolated from rodents was performed in 2014. A total of 649 rodents (11 murine species and 1 shrew species) were caught in 12 port cities in Heilongjiang. Among these rodents, the most common species was A. agrarius, and the second-most common was R. norvegicus. A viral gene PCR assay revealed the presence of two specific genotypes of hantavirus, referred to as Hantaan virus (HTNV) and Seoul virus (SEOV), and the positive SEOV infection rate was higher than that for HTNV. A genetic analysis based on partial M segment sequences indicated that all of the isolates belonging to SEOV could be assigned to two genetic lineages, whereas the isolate belonging to HTNV could be assigned to only one genetic lineage.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  These results suggested that HTNV and SEOV are circulating in A. agrarius and R. norvegicus in the port cities in the area of Heilongjiang, but SEOV may be the dominant common hantavirus.
authors.affiliation: Department of Wildlife Medicine, Wildlife Resources Faculty, Northeast Forestry University, Harbin, 150040, China.
authors.forename: Suya
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Cao
authors.affiliation: State Key Laboratory of Veterinary Biotechnology, Harbin Veterinary Research Institute, the Chinese Academy of Agriculture Sciences, Harbin, 150001, China.
authors.forename: Jian
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Ma
authors.affiliation: Heilongjiang International Travel Healthcare Center, Harbin, 150001, China.
authors.forename: Cheng
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Cheng
authors.affiliation: Heilongjiang International Travel Healthcare Center, Harbin, 150001, China.
authors.forename: Wendong
authors.initials: W
authors.lastname: Ju
authors.affiliation: Department of Wildlife Medicine, Wildlife Resources Faculty, Northeast Forestry University, Harbin, 150040, China. wangyl@nefu.edu.com.
authors.forename: Yulong
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Wang
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D002681:China; D002947:Cities; D014644:Genetic Variation; D005838:Genotype; D018063:Hantaan virus / Q000145:classification / Q000235:genetics; D006476:Orthohantavirus / Q000145:classification* / Q000235:genetics* / Q000302:isolation & purification; D051379:Mice; D017720:Molecular Epidemiology; D010802:Phylogeny; D012367:RNA, Viral / Q000235:genetics; D012377:Rodentia / Q000821:virology*; D029263:Seoul virus / Q000145:classification / Q000235:genetics; D014763:Viral Matrix Proteins / Q000235:genetics
chemical_list: D012367:RNA, Viral; D014763:Viral Matrix Proteins
keywords: Epidemiology; HTNV; Hantavirus; Heilongjiang; SEOV