Research Interests

The arenaviruses and hantaviruses are rodent-borne pathogens that cause significant morbidity and mortality in humans. Arenaviruses cause illnesses ranging from aseptic meningitis following infection with lymphocytic choriomeningitis virus (LCMV) to hemorrhagic fever syndromes following infection with Lassa, Junin, Machupo, and Guanarito viruses, whereas hantaviruses cause hantavirus cardiopulmonary syndrome (HCPS), a disease that carries a 30 - 50% mortality rate in the Americas. Viruses in both genera have RNA genomes that encode four open reading frames in either negative sense (hantavirus) or ambisense (arenavirus) fashion. Currently there are no licensed vaccines available for the prevention of arenavirus or hantavirus disease. Dr. Botten’s research interests pertaining to these viruses include understanding how the host immune response contributes to pathogenesis and/or protective immunity, identifying novel host-pathogen interactions, understanding how these viruses regulate their replicative activity to establish persistent infection in reservoir rodents, and developing novel therapeutic agents and vaccines.

The world's first outdoor biosafety level-4 laboratory for studies of deer mice infected with Sin Nombre hantavirus

Selected Publications

Botten, J. and Kotturi, M. F. (2007) Adaptive immunity to lymphocytic choriomeningitis virus: new insights into antigenic determinants. Future Virology; 2, 495-508.

Botten, J., Whitton, J. L., Barrowman, P., Sidney, J., Whitmire, J. K., Alexander, J., Ting, J., Bui, H., Sette, A., and Buchmeier, M. J. (2007) HLA-A2-restricted protection against lethal lymphocytic choriomeningitis. Journal of Virology; 81, 2307-2317.

Kotturi, M. F., Peters, B., Buendia-Laysa Jr., F., Sidney, J., Oseroff, C., Botten, J., Grey, H., Buchmeier, M. J., and Sette A. (2007) The CD8+ T-Cell Response to Lymphocytic Choriomeningitis Virus Involves the L Antigen: Uncovering New Tricks for an Old Virus. Journal of Virology; 81, 4928-4940.

Mothe, B. R., Stewart, B. S. , Oseroff, C., Bui, H. H., Stogiera, S., Garcia, Z., Dow, C., Rodriguez-Carreno, M., Kotturi, M., Pasquetto,. V., Botten, J., Crotty, S., Janssen, E., Buchmeier, M. J., and Sette, A. (2007) Chronic Lymphocytic Choriomeningitis Virus Infection Actively Down-Regulates CD4+ T Cell Responses Directed against a Broad Range of Epitopes. Journal of Immunology; 179, 1058-1067.

Botten, J., Alexander, J., Pasquetto, V., Sidney, J., Barrowman, P., Ting, J., Peters, B., Southwood, S., Stewart, B., Rodriguez-Carreno, M. P., Mothe, B., Whitton, J. L., Sette, A. and Buchmeier, M. J. (2006). Identification of protective Lassa virus epitopes that are restricted by HLA-A2. Journal of Virology; 80, 8351-8361.

Nussbaum, A. K., Rodriguez-Carreno, M. P., Benning, N., Botten, J., and Whitton, J. L. (2005). Immunoproteasome-deficient mice mount largely normal CD8+ T cell responses to LCMV infection and DNA vaccination. Journal of Immunology; 175, 1153-1160.

Botten, J., Mirowsky, K., Kusewitt, D., Ye, C., Gottlieb, K., Prescott, J., and Hjelle, B. (2003). Persistent Sin Nombre virus infection in the deer mouse (Peromyscus maniculatus) model: sites of replication and strand specific expression. Journal of Virology; 77, 1540-1550.

Botten, J., Mirowsky, K., Ye, C., Gottlieb, K., Saavedra, M., Ponce, L., and Hjelle, B. (2002). Shedding and intracage transmission of Sin Nombre hantavirus in the deer mouse (Peromyscus maniculatus) model. Journal of Virology; 76, 7587-7594.

Botten, J., Ricci, R., and Hjelle, B. (2001). Establishment of a breeding colony of deer mice (Peromyscus maniculatus) from New Mexico. Comparative Medicine; 51, 314-318.

*Camaioni, M., *Botten, J., Hjelle, B., and Loew, S. (2001). Hantavirus seroconversion of wild-caught Peromyscus during quarantine. Emerging Infectious Diseases; 7, 13-14. *shared first authorship

Botten, J., Nofchissey, R., Kirkendoll-Ahern, H., Rodriguez-Moran, P., Wortman, I., Goade, D., Yates, T., and Hjelle, B. (2000). Outdoor facility for quarantine of wild rodents infected with hantavirus. Journal of Mammalogy; 81, 250-259.

Botten, J., Mirowsky, K., Kusewitt, D., Bharadwaj, M., Yee, J., Ricci, R., Feddersen, R. M., and Hjelle, B. (2000). Experimental infection model for Sin Nombre hantavirus in the deer mouse (Peromyscus maniculatus). Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (USA) Track II; 97, 10578-10583.