Tula hantavirus in Belgium

Abstract

European common voles (Microtus arvalis), captured in Belgium in 1999, were proven by molecular as well as by serological techniques to be infected with Tula hantavirus (TULV). This is the first evidence for the presence of TULV in this country. No indication of spill-over infections of Puumala virus, known to be highly endemic among bank voles (Clethrionomys glareolus) within the same geographical regions as the trapped TULV-infected common voles, was observed. Together with previous reports on the circulation of TULV in eastern/central Europe, this finding suggests a more wide-spread circulation of this hantavirus serotype throughout the continent.