TY - JOUR AU - Günther, Stephan AU - Emmerich, Petra AU - Laue, Thomas AU - Kühle, Olaf AU - Asper, Marcel AU - Jung, Annegret AU - Grewing, Thomas AU - ter Meulen, Jan AU - Schmitz, Herbert T1 - Imported Lassa Fever in Germany: 
Molecular Characterization of a New Lassa Virus Strain T2 - Emerging Infectious Disease journal PY - 2000 VL - 6 IS - 5 SP - 466 SN - 1080-6059 AB - We describe the isolation and characterization of a new Lassa virus strain imported into Germany by a traveler who had visited Ghana, Côte D'Ivoire, and Burkina Faso. This strain, designated "AV," originated from a region in West Africa where Lassa fever has not been reported. Viral S RNA isolated from the patient's serum was amplified and sequenced. A long-range reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction allowed amplification of the full-length (3.4 kb) S RNA. The coding sequences of strain AV differed from those of all known Lassa prototype strains (Josiah, Nigeria, and LP) by approximately 20%, mainly at third codon positions. Phylogenetically, strain AV appears to be most closely related to strain Josiah from Sierra Leone. Lassa viruses comprise a group of genetically highly diverse strains, which has implications for vaccine development. The new method for full-length S RNA amplification may facilitate identification and molecular analysis of new arenaviruses or arenavirus strains. KW - KW - Germany DO - 10.3201/eid0605.000504 UR - https://wwwnc.cdc.gov/eid/article/6/5/00-0504_article ER - End of Reference