Longitudinal studies of
Sin Nombre virus in deer mouse-dominated ecosystems of Montana.
Sin Nombre virus in deer mice captured inside homes, southwestern Montana.
Summary of laboratory-confirmed hantavirus pulmonary syndrome cases caused by viruses other than
Sin Nombre virus, United States, 1993-2007 No.
We used ELISAs to test the samples for IgG with the specific antigen for
Sin Nombre virus and for IgM with the Laguna Negra and Andes viruses.
Genetic links of the type have been reported for PUUV infections in Finland (11) and for
Sin Nombre virus infection during the outbreak in the Four Corners area of the United States (4,12), but perfect sequence match was not observed.
Using an enzyme-linked immunoglobulin M (IgM) capture immunosorbent assay (ELISA), elevated hantavirus IgM titers were found for the Muerto Canyon virus (MCV) (proposed to be renamed
Sin Nombre virus).
Virus culture and identification was attempted in African green monkey Vero cell cultures by indirect immunofluorescence assay and
Sin Nombre virus (SNV) polyclonal antibodies, as described for arboviruses (22).
The viruses known to cause HPS on the North American continent are Bayou virus, Black Creek Canal virus (BCCV), Choclo virus (CHOV), New York virus, and
Sin Nombre virus (SNV) (3-7).
In binding assays, antibody to all known hantaviruses indigenous to the Americas cross-react with the N protein of
Sin Nombre virus (10).
Hantavirus pulmonary syndrome (HPS) was first recognized in 1993 after an outbreak of acute respiratory distress syndrome associated with
Sin Nombre virus occurred in the southwestern United States (1).
In the United States, most HPS cases are likely caused by
Sin Nombre virus (6), the virus responsible for the initially identified HPS cases.