Ecology of Lassa virus and related arenavirus in the natural host Mastomys natalensis.

This is an interdisciplinary project submitted by a German anc! a Belgian partner with complementary expertise in vir% gy and ecology. It is concerned with studying the ec% gy of Arenaviruses that can cause hemorrhagic fever in humans. Our understanding of the transmission mode and viral dynamic of Arenaviruses in wild/ife, however, is very limited. The natural reservoir of some Old Word Arenaviruses, including Lassa virus, is reported to be rats of the genus Mastomys. /n addition, it is a/so not known whether different types of Arenaviruses differ in their pathogenicity in their natural hosts. The object of th is work is to use experimental models and field work to address the issues described above. A better understanding of this issue might help us to identify the risk factor for zoonotic transmission of Arenaviruses from animals to humans.

Keywords:ARENAVIRUSES, ECOLOGY, VIROLOGY

Disciplines:Ecology, Microbiology, Systems biology, Environmental science and management, Other environmental sciences, Laboratory medicine

Project type:Collaboration project