Yi Tan, Tommy Tsan-Yuk Lam, Lea A Heberlein-Larson, Sandra C Smole, Albert J Auguste, Scott Hennigan, Rebecca A Halpin, Nadia Fedorova, Vinita Puri, Timothy B Stockwell, Meghan H Shilts, Theodore Andreadis, Philip M Armstrong, Robert B Tesh, Scott C Weaver, Thomas R Unnasch, Alexander T Ciota, Laura D Kramer, Suman R Das
Eastern equine encephalitis virus (EEEV) has a high case-fatality rate in horses and humans, and Florida has been hypothesized to be the source of EEEV epidemics for the northeastern U.S. To test this hypothesis, we sequenced complete genomes of 433 EEEV strains collected within the U.S. from 1934 to 2014. Phylogenetic analysis suggested EEEV evolves relatively slowly and that transmission is enzootic in Florida, characterized by higher genetic diversity and long-term local persistence. In contrast, EEEV in New York and Massachusetts were characterized by lower genetic diversity, multiple introductions, and shorter local persistence...
April 4, 2018: Journal of Virology