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. 2006 Apr 5;13(3):279–290. doi: 10.1111/j.1750-3639.2003.tb00028.x

Acute Encephalitis, a Poliomyelitis‐like Syndrome and Neurological Sequelae in a Hamster Model for Flavivirus Infections

Pieter Leyssen 1, Romaric Croes 2, Philipp Rau 3, Sabine Heiland 3, Erik Verbeken 2, Raphael Sciot 1, Jan Paeshuyse 1, Nathalie Charlier 1, Erik De Clercq 1, Uta Meyding‐Lamadé 3, Johan Neyts 1,✉
PMCID: PMC8095928  PMID: 12946018

Abstract

Infection of hamsters with the murine flavivirus Modoc results in (meningo) encephalitis, which is, during the acute phase, frequently associated with flaccid paralysis, as also observed in patients with West Nile virus encephalitis. Twenty percent of the hamsters that recover from the acute encephalitis develop life‐long neurological sequelae, reminiscent of those observed, for example, in survivors of Japanese encephalitis. Magnetic resonance imaging and histology revealed severe lesions predominantly located in the olfactory‐limbic system, both in hamsters with acute encephalitis as in survivors. Prominent pathology was also detected in the spinal cord of hamsters with paralysis. Modoc virus infections in hamsters provide a unique model for the study of encephalitis, a poliomyelitis‐like syndrome and neurological sequelae following flavivirus infection.

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