Complete genomic sequence of a dengue type 2 virus from the French West Indies

Severe forms of dengue fever, dengue haemorrhagic fever, and dengue shock s yndrome, were not prominent in the Americas until the epidemic of Cuba in 1 981. Since that time, they have spread to other countries in Central and So uth America, correlating with the spread of dengue type 2 viruses related t o Southeast Asian strains. We report here the complete genomic sequence of a dengue type 2 virus isolated during the epidemic in La Martinique in 1998 . This constitutes the first complete genetic characterization of a dengue virus strain from French West Indies, and also the first molecular identifi cation in this region of a dengue 2 strain phylogenetically related to the emerging American type 2 dengue viruses. (C) 2000 Academic Press.