Co-circulation of Araraquara and Juquitiba Hantavirus in Brazilian Cerrado.

Hantavirus cardiopulmonary syndrome is an emerging serious disease in the Americas, transmitted from wild rodents to humans through inhalation of aerosol containing virus. Herein, we characterized two distinct hantaviruses circulating in rodent species form Central Plateau, Midwestern region of Brazil in the Cerrado (savanna-like) biome, an area characterized by small trees and grasses adapted to climates with long dry periods. In this study, we identified the co-circulation of the Araraquara virus and a possible new lineage of the Juquitiba virus (JUQV) in Oligoryzomys nigripes. The implications of co-circulation are still unknown, but it can be the key for increasing viral diversity or emergence of new species through spillover or host switching events leading to co-infection and consequently recombination or reassortment between different virus species. Phylogenetic analyses based on the complete S segment indicated that, alongside with Oligoryzomys mattogrossae rodents, O. nigripes species could also have a whole as JUQV reservoir in the Cerrado biome. Although these rodents' species are common in the Cerrado biome, they are not abundant demonstrating how complex and different hantavirus enzootic cycles can be in this particular biome.

Seroprevalence of Hantavirus among Manual Cane Cutters and Epidemiological Aspects of HPS in Central Brazil.

Hantavirus pulmonary syndrome (HPS) is a rodent-borne zoonotic disease that is endemic throughout the Americas. Agricultural activities increase exposure to wild rodents, especially for sugarcane cutters. We carried out a survey of the epidemiological aspects of HPS and investigated the prevalence of hantavirus infection in the sugarcane cutter population from different localities in the Brazilian Midwest region. We conducted a retrospective study of all confirmed HPS cases in the state of Goiás reported to the National HPS surveillance system between 2007 and 2017, along with a seroepidemiological study in a population of sugarcane cutters working in Goiás state in 2016, using the anti-hantavirus (Andes) ELISA IgG. A total of 634 serum samples from cane cutters were tested for hantavirus antibodies, with 44 (6.9%) being IgG-reactive according to ELISA. The destination of garbage was the only statistically significant variable (p = 0.03) related to the detection of hantavirus IgG (p < 0.05). We described the epidemiological profile of reported hantavirus cases in Goiás-a highly endemic area for HPS, and where the seroepidemiological study was conducted. Our results increase our knowledge about hantavirus infections in Brazil and highlight the vulnerability of sugarcane cutters to a highly lethal disease that, to date, has no specific treatment or vaccination.