Lassa virus activity in Guinea: Distribution of human antiviral antibody defined using enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay with recombinant antigen

More than 3,100 households in 27 selected villages distributed in the main geographic regions of Guinea were surveyed for the presence of Lassa virus‐specific IgG antibodies (LVA), using an enzyme‐linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) with Lassa virus nucleocapsid protein expressed in insect cells infected with a recombinant baculovirus as antigen. The highest prevalence of LVA (25–55%) was found among inhabitants of tropical secondary forest (areas near Gueckedou, Yomou, and Lola) and guinea savannah (Faranah and Kindia areas), near the southern frontiers with Sierra Leone and Liberia. A much lower prevalence (4–7%) was found among inhabitants of mountainous (Pita, Labe, and Mali) and coastal (Boffa, Boké) areas. We found no discernible differences in LVA prevalence between males and females or among various age groups. Testing of 406 hospital staff members of the eight central hospitals in these areas for LVA revealed a similar distribution of seropositivity among hospitals in various prefectures. The highest prevalence of LVA in hospital staff (29–40%) was in the Gueckedou and Lola hospitals. Sera of LVA‐positive persons were tested via Western blot analysis. Antibodies bound predominantly to NP and GP2 proteins. © 1993 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.