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Vaccines (Basel) 2020 Jun 3;8(2). Epub 2020 Jun 3.

Theoretical Biology and Biophysics, Los Alamos National Laboratory, Los Alamos, NM 505, USA.

Vaccinations are a crucial intervention in combating infectious diseases. The three neurotropic Alphaviruses, Eastern (EEEV), Venezuelan (VEEV), and Western (WEEV) equine encephalitis viruses, are pathogens of interest for animal health, public health, and biological defense. In both equines and humans, these viruses can cause febrile illness that may progress to encephalitis. Read More

Microb Risk Anal 2020 Mar 12:100104. Epub 2020 Mar 12.

Independent Scientist, 15 Weare Close, Portland, Dorset, DT5 1JP, United Kingdom.

Virus binding to host cells involves specific interactions between viral (glyco)proteins (GP) and host cell surface receptors (Cr) (protein or sialic acid (SA)). The magnitude of the enthalpy of association changes with temperature according to the change in heat capacity (ΔC) on GP/Cr binding, being little affected for avian influenza virus (AIV) haemagglutinin (HA) binding to SA (ΔC = 0 kJ/mol/K) but greatly affected for HIV gp120 binding to CD4 receptor (ΔC = -5.0 kJ/mol/K). Read More

Microb Risk Anal 2019 Aug 5;12:27-43. Epub 2019 Mar 5.

15 Weare Close, Portland, Dorset DT5 1JP, United Kingdom.

Arboviruses such as West Nile virus (WNV), bluetongue virus (BTV), dengue virus (DENV) and chikungunya virus (CHIKV) infect their arthropod vectors over a range of average temperatures depending on the ambient temperature. How the transmission efficiency of an arbovirus (i.e. Read More

Transbound Emerg Dis 2020 Mar 29. Epub 2020 Mar 29.

Institute of Diagnostic Virology, Friedrich-Loeffler-Institut, Greifswald-Insel Riems, Germany.

Borna disease virus 1 (BoDV-1) is the causative agent of Borna disease, an often fatal neurologic condition of domestic mammals, including New World camelids, in endemic areas in Central Europe. Recently, BoDV-1 gained further attention by the confirmation of fatal zoonotic infections in humans. Although Borna disease and BoDV-1 have been described already over the past decades, comprehensive reports of Borna disease outbreaks in domestic animals employing state-of-the-art diagnostic methods are missing. Read More

Viruses 2020 Feb 27;12(3). Epub 2020 Feb 27.

Department of Biology, Baylor University, Waco, 76798 TX, USA.

Chikungunya virus (CHIKV) is an alphavirus that causes febrile illness punctuated by severe polyarthralgia. After the emergence of CHIKV in the Western Hemisphere, multiple reports of congenital infections were published that documented neurological complications, cardiac defects, respiratory distress, and miscarriage. The Western Hemisphere is endemic to several alphaviruses, and whether antigenic cross-reactivity can impact the course of infection has not been explored. Read More

mBio 2020 02 11;11(1). Epub 2020 Feb 11.

Department of Medicine, Washington University School of Medicine, St. Louis, Missouri, USA

Venezuelan and western equine encephalitis viruses (VEEV and WEEV, respectively) invade the central nervous system (CNS) early during infection, via neuronal and hematogenous routes. While viral replication mediates host shutoff, including expression of type I interferons (IFN), few studies have addressed how alphaviruses gain access to the CNS during established infection or the mechanisms of viral crossing at the blood-brain barrier (BBB). Here, we show that hematogenous dissemination of VEEV and WEEV into the CNS occurs via caveolin-1 (Cav-1)-mediated transcytosis (Cav-MT) across an intact BBB, which is impeded by IFN and inhibitors of RhoA GTPase. Read More

PLoS Pathog 2020 02 6;16(2):e1008102. Epub 2020 Feb 6.

Institute for Human Infections and Immunity, University of Texas Medical Branch, Galveston, Texas, United States of America.

Understanding the circumstances under which arboviruses emerge is critical for the development of targeted control and prevention strategies. This is highlighted by the emergence of chikungunya and Zika viruses in the New World. However, to comprehensively understand the ways in which viruses emerge and persist, factors influencing reductions in virus activity must also be understood. Read More

Neotrop Entomol 2020 Apr 6;49(2):268-274. Epub 2020 Jan 6.

Centro de Estudios Parasitológicos y Vectores (CEPAVE CONICETCCT-La Plata-UNLP), La Plata, Buenos Aires, Argentina.

Iridoviridae is a DNA virus family that affects both vertebrates and invertebrates. Immature aquatic stages of many dipteran species infected with iridovirus have been found in different places worldwide. The most represented genera of the Culicidae family are Aedes and Psorophora. Read More

Microbiol Resour Announc 2020 Jan 2;9(1). Epub 2020 Jan 2.

Virology Division, United States Army Medical Research Institute of Infectious Diseases, Fort Detrick, Frederick, Maryland, USA

We sequenced the complete coding genome of the western equine encephalitis virus (WEEV) strain Fleming. This strain was originally isolated in 1938 from a human WEEV case. Read More

Gene 2020 Mar 26;729:144300. Epub 2019 Dec 26.

Division of Virology, Defence Research and Development Establishment, Jhansi Road, Gwalior 474002, India. Electronic address:

West Nile virus (WNV) has been found to be a common cause of neuroinvasive arboviral disease worldwide in human and horses. The process of RNA interference induced by small RNA molecules, like small interfering RNA (siRNA) and microRNA (miRNA), proved to be a novel approach for preventing viral infections. So far there is no published data for inhibition of West Nile virus by vector delivered artificial miRNA which believed to have more inhibitory potential than small interfering (siRNA). Read More

J Virol 2020 Jan 17;94(3). Epub 2020 Jan 17.

State Key Laboratory of Virology, College of Life Sciences, Wuhan University, Wuhan, Hubei, China

RNA interference (RNAi) is a conserved antiviral immune defense in eukaryotes, and numerous viruses have been found to encode viral suppressors of RNAi (VSRs) to counteract antiviral RNAi. Alphaviruses are a large group of positive-stranded RNA viruses that maintain their transmission and life cycles in both mosquitoes and mammals. However, there is little knowledge about how alphaviruses antagonize RNAi in both host organisms. Read More

J Gen Virol 2020 Jan;101(1):96-104

German Center for Infection Research (DZIF), Berlin, Germany.

The genus harbours mostly insect-transmitted viruses that cause severe disease in humans, livestock and wildlife. Thus far, only three alphaviruses with a host range restricted to insects have been found in mosquitoes from the Old World, namely Eilat virus (EILV), Taï Forest alphavirus (TALV) and Mwinilunga alphavirus (MWAV). In this study, we found a novel alphavirus in one mosquito sampled in Panama. Read More

PLoS Pathog 2019 10 28;15(10):e1007867. Epub 2019 Oct 28.

Center for Vaccine Research, Department of Immunology and Microbiology and Molecular Genetics, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA United States of America.

Eastern equine encephalitis virus (EEEV), a mosquito-borne RNA virus, is one of the most acutely virulent viruses endemic to the Americas, causing between 30% and 70% mortality in symptomatic human cases. A major factor in the virulence of EEEV is the presence of four binding sites for the hematopoietic cell-specific microRNA, miR-142-3p, in the 3' untranslated region (3' UTR) of the virus. Three of the sites are "canonical" with all 7 seed sequence residues complimentary to miR-142-3p while one is "non-canonical" and has a seed sequence mismatch. Read More

Antibodies (Basel) 2018 Dec 15;7(4). Epub 2018 Dec 15.

Naval Research Laboratory, Center for Biomolecular Science and Engineering, Washington, DC 20375, USA.

In this work, we describe the selection and characterization of single-domain antibodies (sdAb) towards the E2/E3E2 envelope protein of the Western equine encephalitis virus (WEEV). Our purpose was to identify novel recognition elements which could be used for the detection, diagnosis, and perhaps treatment of western equine encephalitis (WEE). To achieve this goal, we prepared an immune phage display library derived from the peripheral blood lymphocytes of a llama that had been immunized with an equine vaccine that includes killed WEEV (West Nile Innovator + VEWT). Read More

NPJ Parkinsons Dis 2019 13;5:20. Epub 2019 Sep 13.

1Department of Environmental and Radiological Health Sciences, Colorado State University, Fort Collins, CO 80523 USA.

Neuroinvasive infections with mosquito-borne alphaviruses such as Western equine encephalitis virus (WEEV) can cause post-encephalitic parkinsonism. To understand the mechanisms underlying these neurological effects, we examined the capacity of WEEV to induce progressive neurodegeneration in outbred CD-1 mice following non-lethal encephalitic infection. Animals were experientally infected with recombinant WEEV expressing firefly luciferase or dsRed (RFP) reporters and the extent of viral replication was controlled using passive immunotherapy. Read More

Antiviral Res 2019 11 5;171:104597. Epub 2019 Sep 5.

Emory Institute for Drug Development (EIDD), Emory University, Atlanta, GA, USA; Drug Innovation Ventures at Emory (DRIVE), Atlanta, GA, USA. Electronic address:

The New World alphaviruses Venezuelan, Eastern, and Western equine encephalitis viruses (VEEV, EEEV and WEEV, respectively) commonly cause a febrile disease that can progress to meningoencephalitis, resulting in significant morbidity and mortality. To address the need for a therapeutic agent for the treatment of Alphavirus infections, we identified and pursued preclinical characterization of a ribonucleoside analog EIDD-1931 (β-D-N-hydroxycytidine, NHC), which has shown broad activity against alphaviruses in vitro and has a very high genetic barrier for development of resistance. To be truly effective as a therapeutic agent for VEEV infection a drug must penetrate the blood brain barrier and arrest virus replication in the brain. Read More

Vet Microbiol 2019 Aug 23;235:310-318. Epub 2019 Jul 23.

Shanghai Veterinary Research Institute, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Shanghai 200241, PR China; Jiangsu Co-Innovation Center for the Prevention and Control of Important Animal Infectious Disease and Zoonose, Yangzhou University, Yangzhou, 225009, PR China. Electronic address:

Porcine reproductive and respiratory syndrome virus (PRRSV) causes great economic losses to the swine industry globally; however, effective control measures for this virus are limited. Here, we screened a porcine alveolar macrophage (PAM) cDNA library with a yeast two-hybrid system to reveal that galectin-1 (Gal-1), an endogenous innate immune protein encoded by LGALS1, interacts with nonstructural protein 11 (Nsp11) of PRRSV. Western blotting and viral titer assays indicated that Gal-1 overexpression suppressed replication in multiple PRRSV strains (P < 0. Read More

J Wildl Dis 2020 01 25;56(1):66-81. Epub 2019 Jun 25.

Field Veterinary Program, Wildlife Conservation Society, 2300 Southern Boulevard, Bronx, New York 10460, USA.

Despite being the most numerous penguin species in South America, exposure of the Magellanic Penguin () to pathogens has not yet been thoroughly assessed. We collected serum from 1,058 Magellanic Penguins at 10 breeding colonies along the entire latitudinal range of this species in Argentina. The work spanned 10 breeding seasons over 15 yr (1994-2008). Read More

Sci Transl Med 2019 05;11(492)

Vaccine Research Center, National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD 20892, USA.

Western, Eastern, and Venezuelan equine encephalitis viruses (WEEV, EEEV, and VEEV, respectively) are important mosquito-borne agents that pose public health and bioterrorism threats. Despite considerable advances in understanding alphavirus replication, there are currently no available effective vaccines or antiviral treatments against these highly lethal pathogens. To develop a potential countermeasure for viral encephalitis, we generated a trivalent, or three-component, EEV vaccine composed of virus-like particles (VLPs). Read More

Transbound Emerg Dis 2019 Sep 26;66(5):1946-1957. Epub 2019 May 26.

OIE Reference Center for West Nile Disease, Istituto Zooprofilattico Sperimentale "G. Caporale", Teramo, Italy.

In 2018, Croatia reported the largest outbreak of West Nile virus (WNV) infections as well as the re-occurrence of human Usutu virus (USUV) infections. For the first time, fatal WNV and USUV infections were detected in wild birds. We analysed epidemiological characteristics and molecular epidemiology of WNV and USUV infections detected during 2018 transmission season. Read More

Mol Ther 2019 04 7;27(4):850-865. Epub 2019 Jan 7.

GSK, Rockville, MD 20850, USA. Electronic address:

Venezuelan equine encephalitis virus (VEEV) is a known biological defense threat. A live-attenuated investigational vaccine, TC-83, is available, but it has a high non-response rate and can also cause severe reactogenicity. We generated two novel VEE vaccine candidates using self-amplifying mRNA (SAM). Read More

Antiviral Res 2019 03 26;163:125-139. Epub 2019 Jan 26.

National Center for Biodefense and Infectious Diseases, School of Systems Biology, George Mason University, Manassas, VA, USA. Electronic address:

The New World alphaviruses, Venezuelan, eastern and western equine encephalitis viruses (VEEV, EEEV, and WEEV), are important human pathogens due to their ability to cause varying levels of morbidity and mortality in humans. There is also concern about VEEV and EEEV being used as bioweapons. Currently, a FDA-approved antiviral is lacking for New World alphaviruses. Read More

Antiviral Res 2019 03 11;163:59-69. Epub 2019 Jan 11.

Aix Marseille Université, CNRS, AFMB UMR 7257, Marseille, France; Unité des Virus Emergents (UVE: Aix-Marseille Univ-IRD 190-Inserm 1207-IHU Méditerranée Infection), Marseille, France. Electronic address:

Alphaviruses such as the Venezuelan equine encephalitis virus (VEEV) are important human emerging pathogens transmitted by mosquitoes. They possess a unique viral mRNA capping mechanism catalyzed by the viral non-structural protein nsP1, which is essential for virus replication. The alphaviruses capping starts by the methylation of a GTP molecule by the N7-guanine methyltransferase (MTase) activity; nsP1 then forms a covalent link with mGMP releasing pyrophosphate (GT reaction) and the mGMP is next transferred onto the 5'-diphosphate end of the viral mRNA to form a cap-0 structure. Read More

PLoS One 2018 17;13(12):e0208851. Epub 2018 Dec 17.

Department of Microbiology and Immunology, Faculty of Tropical Medicine, Mahidol University, Bangkok, Thailand.

In response to the aggressive global spread of the mosquito-borne chikungunya virus (CHIKV), an accurate and accessible diagnostic tool is of high importance. CHIKV, an arthritogenic alphavirus, comprises three genotypes: East/Central/South African (ECSA), West African (WA), and Asian. A previous rapid immunochromatographic (IC) test detecting CHIKV E1 protein showed promising performance for detection of the ECSA genotype. Read More

J Med Entomol 2019 02;56(2):584-588

Department of Microbiology, Immunology and Pathology, College of Veterinary Medicine and Biomedical Sciences, Colorado State University, Fort Collins, CO, USA.

Western equine encephalitis (WEE) was once prevalent and routinely isolated from mosquitoes in Colorado; however, isolations of Western equine encephalitis virus (WEEV) have not been reported from mosquito pools since the early 1990s. The objective of the present study was to test pools of Culex tarsalis (Coquillett) mosquitoes sampled from Weld County, CO, in 2016 for evidence of WEEV infection. Over 7,000 mosquitoes were tested, but none were positive for WEEV RNA. Read More

Transbound Emerg Dis 2019 Mar 26;66(2):617-621. Epub 2018 Dec 26.

IRTA, Centre de Recerca en Sanitat Animal (CReSA IRTA-UAB), Bellaterra, Spain.

In September 2017, West Nile virus (WNV) lineage 2 was detected in Catalonia (Northern Spain) in northern goshawks by passive surveillance. The phylogenetic analyses showed that it was related to the Central/Southern European strains, evidencing WNV lineage 2 spread to Western Europe. WNV local transmission was later detected in bearded vultures housed at the Wildlife Recovery center where the goshawk was transferred to. Read More

Open Virol J 2018 31;12:80-98. Epub 2018 Aug 31.

ICAR-National Research Centre on Equines, Hisar-125001, India.

Introduction: Zoonotic diseases are the infectious diseases that can be transmitted to human beings and vice versa from animals either directly or indirectly. These diseases can be caused by a range of organisms including bacteria, parasites, viruses and fungi. Viral diseases are highly infectious and capable of causing pandemics as evidenced by outbreaks of diseases like Ebola, Middle East Respiratory Syndrome, West Nile, SARS-Corona, Nipah, Hendra, Avian influenza and Swine influenza. Read More

Mamm Genome 2018 08 27;29(7-8):408-424. Epub 2018 Aug 27.

Department of Genetics, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, NC, 27599, USA.

Alphaviruses, members of the positive-sense, single-stranded RNA virus family Togaviridae, represent a re-emerging public health concern worldwide as mosquito vectors expand into new geographic ranges. Members of the alphavirus genus tend to induce clinical disease characterized by rash, arthralgia, and arthritis (chikungunya virus, Ross River virus, and Semliki Forest virus) or encephalomyelitis (eastern equine encephalitis virus, western equine encephalitis virus, and Venezuelan equine encephalitis virus), though some patients who recover from the initial acute illness may develop long-term sequelae, regardless of the specific infecting virus. Studies examining the natural disease course in humans and experimental infection in cell culture and animal models reveal that host genetics play a major role in influencing susceptibility to infection and severity of clinical disease. Read More

Microb Risk Anal 2018 Aug 30;9:38-54. Epub 2018 Mar 30.

Department of Civil Architectural and Environmental Engineering, Drexel University.

Many infectious disease hazards demonstrate higher susceptibility with regards to younger host ages. This trend of increased susceptibility with decreasing host age can also lead to an increased likelihood of mortality, and prolonged/chronic health effects. For quantitative microbial risk assessment (QMRA) modeling, the ability to quantify the effect of host age in the dose response model can allow modelers to account for these effects mechanistically. Read More

Vaccine 2018 08 20;36(34):5194-5203. Epub 2018 Jul 20.

Defence Research and Development Canada, Suffield Research Centre, Box 4000, Station Main, Medicine Hat, AB T1A 8K6, Canada.

The three encephalitic alphaviruses, western, eastern, and Venezuelan equine encephalitis viruses (WEEV, EEEV, and VEEV) are potential biothreat agents due to high infectivity through aerosol exposure, ease of production in large amounts, and relative stability in the environment. Currently, there is no licensed vaccine for human use to these three encephalitic alphaviruses, and efforts to move vaccine candidates forward into clinical trials have not been successful. In this study, the modified vaccinia Ankara-Bavarian Nordic (MVA-BN®) vaccine platform was used to construct and produce three monovalent recombinant MVA-BN-based encephalitic alphavirus vaccines, MVA-BN-W, MVA-BN-E, and MVA-BN-V. Read More

Antiviral Res 2018 09 5;157:57-67. Epub 2018 Jul 5.

National Center for Biodefense and Infectious Diseases, School of Systems Biology, George Mason University, Manassas, VA, USA. Electronic address:

The New World alphaviruses -Venezuelan, eastern, and western equine encephalitis viruses (VEEV, EEEV, and WEEV respectively) - cause a febrile disease that is often lethal in equines and children and leads to long-term neurological sequelae in survivors. Endemic to the Americas, epizootic outbreaks of the three viruses occur sporadically in the continental United States. All three viruses aerosolize readily, replicate to high titers in cell culture, and have low infectious doses. Read More

J Immunol Res 2018 3;2018:8521060. Epub 2018 Jun 3.

United States Army Medical Research Institute of Infectious Diseases, Fort Detrick, Frederick, MD 21702-5011, USA.

There remains a need for vaccines that can safely and effectively protect against the biological threat agents Venezuelan (VEEV), western (WEEV), and eastern (EEEV) equine encephalitis virus. Previously, we demonstrated that a VEEV DNA vaccine that was optimized for increased antigen expression and delivered by intramuscular (IM) electroporation (EP) elicited robust and durable virus-specific antibody responses in multiple animal species and provided complete protection against VEEV aerosol challenge in mice and nonhuman primates. Here, we performed a comparative evaluation of the immunogenicity and protective efficacy of individual optimized VEEV, WEEV, and EEEV DNA vaccines with that of a 1 : 1 : 1 mixture of these vaccines, which we have termed the 3-EEV DNA vaccine, when delivered by IM EP. Read More

J Pharm Sci 2018 10 5;107(10):2544-2558. Epub 2018 Jun 5.

Macromolecule and Vaccine Stabilization Center, Department of Pharmaceutical Chemistry, University of Kansas, 2030 Becker Drive, Lawrence, Kansas 66047. Electronic address:

The zoonotic equine encephalitis viruses (EEVs) can cause debilitating and life-threatening disease, leading to ongoing vaccine development efforts for an effective virus-like particle (VLP) vaccine based on 3 strains of EEV (Eastern, Western, and Venezuelan or EEE, WEE and VEE VLPs, respectively). In this work, transmission electron microscopy and light scattering studies showed enveloped, spherical, and ∼70 nm sized VLPs. Biophysical studies demonstrated optimal VLP physical stability in the pH range of 7. Read More

Parasit Vectors 2018 05 16;11(1):303. Epub 2018 May 16.

Departamento de Ecología, Genética y Evolución, Grupo de Estudio de Mosquitos, Universidad de Buenos Aires, Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales, Buenos Aires, Argentina.

Background: Gene flow restrictions between populations of Aedes albifasciatus, the vector of Western equine encephalitis and Dirophilaria immitis, have been described in the central region of Argentina. Genetic and eco-physiological variations usually result in local forms reflecting the climatic regions. Mosquito wings and their different parts have ecological functions in flight and communication. Read More

Am J Trop Med Hyg 2018 06 5;98(6):1811-1818. Epub 2018 Apr 5.

Sección Virología, Facultad de Ciencias, Universidad de la República, Montevideo, Uruguay.

Alphaviruses () are arboviruses frequently associated with emerging infectious diseases. In this study, we aimed to investigate the presence of alphaviruses in Uruguay by detecting the viral genome in mosquitoes and neutralizing antibodies in equines. A total of 3,575 mosquitoes were analyzed for alphavirus genome detection. Read More

Viruses 2018 03 24;10(4). Epub 2018 Mar 24.

United States Army Medical Research Institute for Infectious Diseases, Fort Detrick, MD 21702, USA.

Western equine encephalitis virus (WEEV) causes symptoms in humans ranging from mild febrile illness to life-threatening encephalitis, and no human medical countermeasures are licensed. A previous study demonstrated that immune serum from vaccinated mice protected against lethal WEEV infection, suggesting the utility of antibodies for pre- and post-exposure treatment. Here, three neutralizing and one binding human-like monoclonal antibodies were evaluated against WEEV aerosol challenge. Read More

Zoonoses Public Health 2018 08 25;65(5):505-511. Epub 2018 Mar 25.

Pathobiology, School of Veterinary Medicine, St. George's University, St. George, Grenada.

Antibody detection against selected potentially zoonotic vector-borne alphaviruses and flaviviruses was conducted on sera from bats from all six parishes in Grenada, West Indies. Sera were tested for (i) antibodies to flaviviruses West Nile virus, St. Louis encephalitis virus, Ilhéus virus, Bussuquara virus (BSQV), Rio Bravo virus and all four serotypes of dengue virus (DENV) by plaque reduction neutralization test (PRNT); (ii) antibodies to alphaviruses western equine encephalitis virus, Venezuelan equine encephalitis virus and eastern equine encephalitis virus by epitope-blocking enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA); and (iii) antibodies to the alphavirus chikungunya (CHIKV) by PRNT. Read More

Equine Vet J 2018 Jul 14;50(4):436-445. Epub 2018 Apr 14.

School of Veterinary Medicine and Science, University of Nottingham, Sutton Bonington, Leicestershire, UK.

Equine populations worldwide are at increasing risk of infection by viruses transmitted by biting arthropods, including mosquitoes, biting midges (Culicoides), sandflies and ticks. These include the flaviviruses (Japanese encephalitis, West Nile and Murray Valley encephalitis), alphaviruses (eastern, western and Venezuelan encephalitis) and the orbiviruses (African horse sickness and equine encephalosis). This review provides an overview of the challenges faced in the surveillance, prevention and control of the major equine arboviruses, particularly in the context of these viruses emerging in new regions of the world. Read More

Vector Borne Zoonotic Dis 2018 04 13;18(4):206-213. Epub 2018 Feb 13.

5 Department of Microbiology and Infectious Diseases, University of Veterinary Medicine , Budapest, Hungary .

In central Europe, at least three flaviviruses circulate among vectors and vertebrate hosts. West Nile virus (WNV) and Usutu virus (USUV) are mosquito-borne viruses maintained in the nature by enzootic cycle between mosquitoes and birds. Tick-borne encephalitis virus (TBEV) is a flavivirus causing annual human cases in Slovakia. Read More

Vector Borne Zoonotic Dis 2017 12 24;17(12):813-820. Epub 2017 Oct 24.

5 Faculty of Medicine, University of Novi Sad , Novi Sad, Serbia .

Tick-borne encephalitis (TBE) is a zoonotic flaviviral infection that is a growing public health concern in European countries. The aims of this research were to detect and characterize tick-borne encephalitis virus (TBEV) in Ixodes ricinus ticks at presumed natural foci in Serbia, and to determine seroprevalence of TBEV IgG antibodies in humans and animals. A total of 500 I. Read More

Transbound Emerg Dis 2018 Apr 16;65(2):567-577. Epub 2017 Oct 16.

Center for Animal Disease Modeling and Surveillance (CADMS), Department of Medicine & Epidemiology, School of Veterinary Medicine, University of California, Davis, CA, USA.

During the last decade, West Nile virus (WNV) outbreaks have increased sharply in both horses and human in Europe. The aims of this study were to evaluate characteristics and spatio-temporal distribution of WNV outbreaks in horses in Spain between 2010 and 2016 in order to identify the environmental variables most associated with WNV occurrence and to generate high-resolution WNV suitability maps to inform risk-based surveillance strategies in this country. Between August 2010 and November 2016, a total of 403 WNV suspected cases were investigated, of which, 177 (43. Read More

J Med Entomol 2017 11;54(6):1750-1757

Department of Entomology, University of California, Riverside, CA 92521.

Knowledge of the blood-feeding patterns exhibited by arthropod vectors is essential for understanding the complex dynamics of vector-borne disease transmission. Some species of mosquitoes belonging to the genus Culex have been implicated as having major roles in the transmission of arboviruses such as West Nile virus, Saint Louis encephalitis virus, and Western equine encephalitis virus. Although the host-feeding patterns for many of these Culex species are well studied, the host-feeding patterns of Culex stigmatosoma Dyar are relatively poorly studied, even though this species is suspected to be an important maintenance vector for West Nile virus and other arboviruses. Read More

Viruses 2017 09 29;9(10). Epub 2017 Sep 29.

National Center for Biodefense and Infectious Diseases, School of Systems Biology, George Mason University, Manassas, VA 20110, USA.

Venezuelan equine encephalitis virus (VEEV) is a New World alphavirus that is vectored by mosquitos and cycled in rodents. It can cause disease in equines and humans characterized by a febrile illness that may progress into encephalitis. Like the capsid protein of other viruses, VEEV capsid is an abundant structural protein that binds to the viral RNA and interacts with the membrane-bound glycoproteins. Read More

Annu Rev Med 2018 01 28;69:395-408. Epub 2017 Aug 28.

Institut Pasteur, Biology of Infection Unit, INSERM Unité 1117, 75006 Paris, France; email: ,

Arthropod-borne viruses (arboviruses) have a long history of emerging to infect humans, but during recent decades, they have been spreading more widely and affecting larger populations. This is due to several factors, including increased air travel and uncontrolled mosquito vector populations. Emergence can involve simple spillover from enzootic (wildlife) cycles, as in the case of West Nile virus accompanying geographic expansion into the Americas; secondary amplification in domesticated animals, as seen with Japanese encephalitis, Venezuelan equine encephalitis, and Rift Valley fever viruses; and urbanization, in which humans become the amplification hosts and peridomestic mosquitoes, mainly Aedes aegypti, mediate human-to-human transmission. Read More

Electrophoresis 2017 10 20;38(20):2610-2621. Epub 2017 Sep 20.

Vaccine Production Program, VRC, NIAID, NIH, Gaithersburg, MD, USA.

In this paper, we describe development of a high-throughput, highly sensitive method based on Lab Chip CGE-SDS platform for purity determination and characterization of virus-like particle (VLP) vaccines. A capillary gel electrophoresis approach requiring about 41 s per sample for analysis and demonstrating sensitivity to protein initial concentrations as low as 20 μg/mL, this method has been used previously to evaluate monoclonal antibodies, but this application for lot release assay of VLPs using this platform is unique. The method was qualified and shown to be accurate for the quantitation of VLP purity. Read More

Viruses 2017 06 27;9(7). Epub 2017 Jun 27.

CBR Division, Defence Science and Technology Laboratory (Dstl), Room 201, Building 7a, Porton Down, Salisbury, Wiltshire SP4 0JQ, UK.

Western equine encephalitis virus (WEEV) naturally cycles between mosquitos and birds or rodents, with a case fatality rate of up to 15% in humans during epizootic outbreaks. There are no medical countermeasures to treat WEEV infection, and accidental aerosol exposure increases the case fatality rate up to 40%. Understanding the pathogenesis of infection is required to develop and assess medical countermeasures. Read More

US Army Med Dep J 2017 Jan-Jun(1-17):1-12

Mosquito and Vector Control Division, Harris County Public Health, Houston, Texas.

Avian arboviral surveillance is an integral part of any disease-based integrated mosquito control program. The Harris County Public Health Mosquito and Vector Control Division has performed arboviral surveillance in the wild birds of Harris County and the City of Houston since 1965. Blood samples from live trapped birds were tested for arboviral antibodies to West Nile virus (WNV), St. Read More

Heliyon 2017 Apr 11;3(4):e00286. Epub 2017 Apr 11.

The Institute of Biological Resources, 893-2, Nakayama, Nago-shi, Okinawa 905-0004, Japan.

We have successfully prepared a Japanese encephalitis virus (JEV) - Nakayama virus like particle (NVLP) vaccine using synthetic codon-optimized prM and E genes. The expression of the recombinant JEV Nakayama-BmNPV (JEV-NNPV) virus was determined in infected silkworm Bm-N cells by fluorescence and Western blot analysis. The recombinant was inoculated into silkworm pupae and the yield of Nakayama VLP (NVLP) reached a peak in the homogenates after 3 days. Read More

J Wildl Dis 2017 07 6;53(3):657-661. Epub 2017 Apr 6.

1 Departamento de Etología, Fauna Silvestre y Animales de Laboratorio, Facultad de Medicina Veterinaria y Zootecnia, Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México, Av. Universidad 3000, Delegación Coyoacán, México DF, CP 04510.

Arboviruses are important zoonotic agents with complex transmission cycles and are not well understood because they may involve many vectors and hosts. We studied sympatric wild mammals and hematophagous mosquitoes having the potential to act as hosts and vectors in two areas of southern Mexico. Mosquitoes, bats, and rodents were captured in Calakmul (Campeche) and Montes Azules (Chiapas), between November 2010 and August 2011. Read More