Henipavirus in Northern Short-Tailed Shrew, Alabama, USA

• DOI: 10.3201/eid3102.241155
• Publication Date: 2025-01-17T21:02:32Z
• Authors: Rhys H. Parry; KayLene Y.H. Yamada; Wendy R. Hood; Yang Zhao; Jinlong Y. Lu; Andrei Seluanov; Vera Gorbunova; Naphak Modhiran; Daniel Watterson; Ariel Isaacs
• Keywords: Blarina brevicauda; Alabama; R; Medicine; viruses; Infectious and parasitic diseases; RC109-216; northern short-tailed shrew; Henipavirus; zoonoses

RNA metagenomic analysis of tissues from 4 wild-caught northern short-tailed shrews in Alabama, USA, revealed a novel henipavirus (family Paramyxoviridae). Phylogenetic analysis supported the placement of the virus within the shrew henipavirus clade, related to human-infecting shrewborne henipaviruses. Our study results highlight the presence of henipavirus infections in North America.