Molecular Signature of Hantavirus Infection in Humans Decoded, Universitatsmedizin Berlin Study

Scientists at Charité -- Universitätsmedizin Berlin and Labor Berlin GmbH have succeeded in clarifying the molecular signature of the viruses that lead to an increasing size and number of hantavirus outbreaks in Germany. These illnesses affect foremost the kidneys and lungs. Using a newly created register, the study results now enable comparison of the genetic information of a particular viral strain detected in a patient with the hantaviruses in circulation in Germany. "We can now precisely allocate a patient's viral strain where the infection occurred in a particular region at risk in Germany," explains virologist Prof. Detlev Krüger, director of the Charité Institute for Medical Virology. Study results are published in the September issue of the journal Emerging Infectious Diseases*.

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