Serological evidence of hantavirus infection in an urban area in Mato Grosso State, Brazil

Abstract

Introduction:In Brazil, Mato Grosso (MT) has the highest number of hantavirus cardiopulmonary syndrome cases. Our study aimed to identify anti-hantavirus antibodies in the sera of patients from Sinop, MT, presenting with acute febrile illness. Methods: A retrospective analysis of data for 198 sera samples assessed using enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) was conducted. Results: Immunoglobulins G (IgGs) against the hantavirus nucleoprotein were found in 13.6% of the tested sera. No sample had immunoglobulin M (IgM) antibodies to hantavirus. Seropositivity occurred mainly in female residents in urban areas who worked around the household. Conclusions: Our findings suggest circulation of hantavirus in Sinop.Keywords: Zoonosis. Serosurvey study. Hantavirus.Hantaviruses (genus Hantavirus, family Bunyaviridae) are emerging zoonotic viruses of great importance for public health. In South America, the rodents of the Sigmodontinae subfamily are reservoirs of these viruses. Some hantaviruses infect humans, causing either hemorrhagic fever with renal syndrome (HFRS) and/or hantavirus cardiopulmonary syndrome (HCPS) (1) .The first cases of HCPS diagnosed in Brazil occurred in 1993. Since then, more than 1,920 cases of hantavirus have been notified in all Brazilian regions, with a case fatality rate of up to 39.5%. Mato Grosso (MT) is the leading state for HCPS cases and accounts for 16.1% of the total notified cases in Brazil. In a previous study conducted in the municipality of Sinop, Mato Grosso State, we carried out an epidemiological surveillance for arboviruses in 198 sera samples from patients presenting with acute febrile illness and clinical-epidemiological diagnoses of dengue. The results showed 46 samples positive for arboviruses. However, it was intriguing that more than 70% of the patients did not have dengue or other arbovirus infections that were tested for (2) . To address the possibility of hantavirus infection, we investigated the presence of antibodies against the hantavirus nucleoprotein in these febrile patients.Sinop is a municipality located 503km from the capital Cuiabá, in a geographical transition zone between a savannah and rainforest. The city was founded in 1974 and currently has an estimated population of approximately 130,000 inhabitants with 17.1% of them living in rural areas. The economic activities include an intensive agriculture based on the grain production, animal husbandry, logging, and human services. All of the sera analyzed in this study were part of the serum bank of the Laboratory of Immunology and Molecular Biology of Universidade Federal de Mato Grosso (UFMT), Campus of Sinop, which have been previously described in detail (2) . At the time of blood collection, the patients filled out a questionnaire that contained their epidemiological data, sex, age, occupation, address and region of birth, as well as information about any contact with rural or forested areas, and contact with rodents. These data were collected to analyze the risk factors associated with infect...

Serological Evidence of Human Orthohantavirus Infections in Barbados, 2008 to 2016

“…Sex bias does occur in infectious disease epidemiology including orthohantavirus infections [ 24 , 27 ]. In Barbados, females were more likely to be infected with orthohantavirus than males and this agrees with studies in the Netherlands and Brazil [ 56 , 57 ]. More research is needed to provide more insight into this gender disparity with respect to orthohantavirus infection in Barbados and possibly the Caribbean.…”

“…This appears to influence orthohantavirus infection in Barbados with higher infection rates observed in patients from urban rather than rural areas [64,65]. This was also observed in Brazil, where females were more likely to become infected and occupation (housewives) was identified as a possible risk [57]. However some research has shown rural areas with a higher risk of orthohantavirus infection than urban areas [65].…”

First serologic evidence of human hantavirus infection in Alagoas State in Northeastern Brazil

“…In addition, four of the seropositive patients attested to having never worked outside of this state, suggesting that these infections occurred within the state's geographic boundaries. The IgG prevalence in this study was lower than that of other regions in Brazil where HCPS is highly endemic, such as 13.6% in the State of Mato Grosso 11 . However, an IgG prevalence of 2% was reported in Uberlandia City in Minas Gerais State 12 , which is another hantavirus-endemic region; this is similar to the prevalence found in the present study.…”

Seropositivity diagnosis for hantavirus in Jataí, Goiás State, Brazil

“…Recently, in the study conducted by Vieira et al 13 , high anti-hantavirus IgG seroprevalence of 13.6% was shown in the City of Sinop in the Mato Grosso State. The study site may justify this in part because the state has the second highest number of HCPS cases nationwide.…”

“…Residents of urban areas also have links to the field, through work or field-related activities which might increase the risk of exposure to rodent reservoirs 11,13 . Thus, when the questionnaire was administered, a majority of the population expressed having experienced situations considered to enhance the risk for hantavirus infection, including rural tourism (74%) and exposure to house cleaning in the countryside, sheds, and other similarities (71%).…”