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This article stated that prior immunizations of hamsters with three heterologous flaviviruses (Japanese encephalitis virus [SLEV], and Yellow fever virus [YFV] 17D vaccine) reduces the severity of subsequent West Nile Virus (WNV) infection. Groups of adult hamsters were immunized with each of the heterologous flaviviruses; approximately 30 days later, the animals were injected intraperitoneally with a virulent New York Strain of West Nile Virus. Subsequent levels of viremia, antibody response, and deaths were compared with those in nonimune (control) hamsters. Immunity to JEV and SLEV was protective against clinical encephalitis and death after challenge with WNV. The antibody response in the sequentially infected hamsters also illustrates the difficulty in making a serologic diagnosis of WNV infection in animals (or humans) with preexisting Flavivirus immunity. In class we have l