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First detection of Tula hantaviruses in Microtus arvalis voles in Hungary

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Abstract

Tula hantavirus (TULV) is a member of the genus Hantavirus, family Bunyaviridae and is mainly carried by the European common vole (Microtus arvalis). In order to detect TULV, we tested Microtus arvalis (MAR) and Microtus subterraneus (MSU) voles captured in two different locations of the Southern Transdanubian region of Hungary. The viral genome was detectable in 37% of the tested MAR voles but, interestingly, was absent in all MSU. Phylogenetic analysis performed with a partial coding sequence of the capsid gene showed that Hungarian TULV strains clustered with viruses detected in western Slovakia and in the Czech Republic. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first report on the identification of TULV detected in MAR voles in the Transdanubian region of Hungary.

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Acknowledgments

This study would not have been possible without the staff of the Regional Laboratory of Virology, County Institute of State Public Health Service; we are deeply indebted to them. We also would like to especially thank Kaposi Tamásné (National Center for Epidemiology, Department of Viral Diagnostics, Reference Laboratory of Viral Zoonozes, Budapest, Hungary) for her help in the rodent dissection. We thank Csaba Fekete and Tibor Pál for comments and assistance in editing of the manuscript.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Institute of Biology, University of Pécs, Ifjúság út 6, 7624, Pecs, Hungary

    Ferenc Jakab & Győző Horváth

  2. Department of Viral Diagnostics, Reference Laboratory of Viral Zoonozes, National Center for Epidemiology, Budapest, Hungary

    Emőke Ferenczi

  3. 2nd Department of Medicine and Nephrology, University Hospital, Pecs, Hungary

    Judit Sebők

  4. Regional Laboratory of Virology, Baranya County Institute of State Public Health Service, Pecs, Hungary

    Ferenc Jakab & György Szűcs

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  1. Ferenc Jakab
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  2. Győző Horváth
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  3. Emőke Ferenczi
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  4. Judit Sebők
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  5. György Szűcs
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Correspondence to Ferenc Jakab.

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Jakab, F., Horváth, G., Ferenczi, E. et al. First detection of Tula hantaviruses in Microtus arvalis voles in Hungary. Arch Virol 153, 2093–2096 (2008). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00705-008-0216-5

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00705-008-0216-5

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