Emerging Infectious Diseases (Sep 2018)

Association of Batai Virus Infection and Encephalitis in Harbor Seals, Germany, 2016

  • Wendy K. Jo,
  • Vanessa M. Pfankuche,
  • Annika Lehmbecker,
  • Byron Martina,
  • Ana Rubio-Garcia,
  • Stefanie Becker,
  • Jochen Kruppa,
  • Klaus Jung,
  • Daniela Klotz,
  • Julia Metzger,
  • Martin Ludlow,
  • Wolfgang Baumgärtner,
  • Erhard van der Vries,
  • Albert Osterhaus

DOI
https://doi.org/10.3201/eid2409.171829
Journal volume & issue
Vol. 24, no. 9
pp. 1691 – 1695

Abstract

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We isolated Batai virus from the brain of a euthanized, 26-year-old, captive harbor seal with meningoencephalomyelitis in Germany. We provide evidence that this orthobunyavirus can naturally infect the central nervous system of a mammal. The full-genome sequence showed differences from a previously reported virus isolate from a mosquito in Germany.

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