TY - JOUR AU - Fulhorst, Charles AU - Charrel, Remi AU - Weaver, Scott AU - Ksiazek, Thomas AU - Bradley, Robert AU - Milazzo, Mary AU - Tesh, Robert AU - Bowen, Michael T1 - Geographic Distribution and Genetic Diversity of Whitewater Arroyo Virus in the Southwestern United States T2 - Emerging Infectious Disease journal PY - 2001 VL - 7 IS - 3 SP - 403 SN - 1080-6059 AB - The purpose of this study was to extend our knowledge of the geographic distribution and genetic diversity of the arenavirus(es) associated with Neotoma species (woodrats) in the southwestern United States. Infectious arenavirus was recovered from 14 (3.3%) of 425 woodrats. The virus-positive species included N. albigula in New Mexico and Oklahoma, N. cinerea in Utah, N. mexicana in New Mexico and Utah, and N. micropus in Texas. Analyses of viral nucleocapsid protein gene sequence data indicated that all the isolates were strains of Whitewater Arroyo virus, an arenavirus previously known only from northwestern New Mexico. Analyses of the sequence data also indicated that there can be substantial genetic diversity among strains of Whitewater Arroyo virus from conspecific woodrats collected from different localities and substantial genetic diversity among strains from different woodrat species collected from the same locality. KW - Whitewater Arroyo virus KW - arenavirus KW - Neotoma KW - woodrat KW - United States DO - 10.3201/eid0703.017306 UR - https://wwwnc.cdc.gov/eid/article/7/3/01-7306_article ER - End of Reference