ISOLATION AND CHARACTERIZATION OF WHITEWATER ARROYO VIRUS, A NOVEL NORTH-AMERICAN ARENAVIRUS

Rodents are principal hosts for each of the well-characterized arenavi ruses. Prior to the present study, Tamiami (TAM) virus was the sole ar enavirus known to be indigenous to North America; it has been isolated only from southern Florida where its primary host is the cotton rat S igmodon hispidus. Recently, arenavirus antibody was found in Neotoma a lbigula woodrats collected from the southwestern United States. The pu rpose of the present study was to isolate and characterize the arenavi rus associated with N. albigula. Three isolates of a novel arenavirus (proposed name ''Whitewater Arroyo,'' WWA) were recovered from two are navirus antibody-positive N. albigula collected from whitewater Arroyo in McKinley County, New Mexico. Two-way serologic tests indicated tha t WWA virus is antigenically distinct from other arenaviruses but most closely related to TAM virus. Phylogenetic analysis of nucleocapsid p rotein gene sequence data showed that WWA virus is a novel arenavirus that is genetically most closely related to TAM virus, The recovery of WWA virus from antibody-positive N. albigula suggests that WWA virus infection in this species can be chronic and thus that N. albigula is a reservoir host of the virus. (C) 1996 Academic Press, Inc.