A new species of mammarenavirus, a mammalian virus from the arenavirus family, was discovered by a scientist from the Institute of Vertebrate Biology of the CAS in collaboration with Russian colleagues. The virus, which, like coronavirus, is a single-stranded RNA virus, is hosted by multimammate rats (Mastomys natalensis). The research of the scientific team of Joelle Gouy de Bellocq took place in Ethiopia, Africa, and its results have now been published in the Journal of Vertebrate Biology.