hanta infection virus

Hantaviruses belong to the bunyaviridae family of viruses. There are 5 genera within the bunyaviridae family: bunyavirus, phlebovirus, nairovirus, tospovirus, and hantavirus. Each is made up of negative-sensed, single-stranded RNA viruses. All these genera include arthropod-borne viruses, with the exception of hantavirus, which is a genus of rodent-borne agents.

The word hantavirus is derived from the Hantaan River, where the Hantaan virus (the etiologic agent of Korean hemorrhagic fever) was first isolated. The disease associated with Hantaan virus is called Korean hemorrhagic fever (a term that is no longer in use) or hemorrhagic fever with renal syndrome (HFRS), a term that is accepted by the World Health Organization. There is not yet (May 2000) an approved antiviral treatment available for HPS.

History

The Hantaviruses constitute a relatively newly discovered class of virus; the disease entity HFRS was first recognized by Western medicine during the Korean War in the early 1950s. In 1993, a newly-recognized species of hantavirus was found to be behind the Hantavirus cardiopulmonary syndrome (HCPS, also called HPS) caused by the Sin Nombre virus (means "without a name") in New Mexico and other Four Corners states. In addition to Hantaan virus and Sin Nombre virus, several other hantaviruses have been implicated as etiologic agents for either HFRS or HCPS.

Geographic distribution and epidemiology

Regions especially affected by HFRS include China, the Korean Peninsula, Russia (Hantaan, Puumala and Seoul viruses), and northern and western Europe (Puumala and Dobrava viruses). Regions with the highest incidences of HCPS include Patagonian Argentina, Chile, Brazil, the United States, Canada, and Panama, where a milder form of disease that spares the heart has been recognized.