The Stat2–/– hamster model was highly susceptible to SFTSV and showed the characteristics of SFTSV infection in humans including viremia, thrombocytopenia, weight loss, and severe pathological lesions accompanied by neutrophilic inflammation in liver and white pulp of spleen; however, in contrast to human infections, no significant change in white blood cell count was observed (Gowen et al., 2017). Here, STAT2 is linked to infection.