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Mem Inst Oswaldo Cruz 2018 Jul 23;113(8):e180082. Epub 2018 Jul 23.

Sanofi Pasteur, Lyon, France.

Dengue remains an unmet public health burden. We determined risk factors for dengue in-hospital mortality in Brazil. Of 326,380 hospitalised dengue cases in 9-45-year-old individuals, there were 971 deaths. Read More

Open Forum Infect Dis 2018 Jul 16;5(7):ofy131. Epub 2018 Jul 16.

Minnesota Department of Health, St. Paul, Minnesota.

Background: In April 2014, a 46-year-old returning traveler from Liberia was transported by emergency medical services to a community hospital in Minnesota with fever and altered mental status. Twenty-four hours later, he developed gingival bleeding. Blood samples tested positive for Lassa fever RNA by reverse transcriptase polymerase chain reaction. Read More

J Glob Health 2018 Dec;8(2):020601

UNICEF, New York, New York, USA.

Background: The role of community health workers (CHWs) in the West Africa Ebola outbreak has been highlighted to advocate for increasing numbers of CHWs globally to build resilience, strengthen health systems, and provide emergency response capacity. However, the roles CHWs played, the challenges they faced, and their effectiveness during the outbreak are not well documented. This study assessed the impact of Ebola on community-based maternal, newborn, and child health (MNCH) services, documented the contribution of CHWs and other community-based actors to the Ebola response, and identified lessons learned to strengthen resilience in future emergencies. Read More

JAMA 2018 Jul;320(2):125-126

University Professor and Faculty Director, O'Neill Institute for National and Global Health Law, Georgetown University Law Center.

PLoS Negl Trop Dis 2018 07 9;12(7):e0006598. Epub 2018 Jul 9.

Department of Chemistry, University of Copenhagen, Frederiksberg, Denmark.

Crimean-Congo hemorrhagic fever virus (CCHFV) causes severe acute human disease with lethal outcome. The knowledge about the immune response for this human health threat is highly limited. In this study, we have screened the glycoprotein of CCHFV for novel linear B-cell epitopic regions using a microarray approach. Read More

Rev Soc Bras Med Trop 2018 May-Jun;51(3):347-351

Secretaria Municipal de Saúde do Rio de Janeiro, Rio de Janeiro, RJ, Brasil.

Introduction: Dengue has affected Rio de Janeiro City since the 1980s. The sequential Zika and chikungunya virus introductions during 2015 aggravated the health scenario, with 97,241 cases of arboviral diseases reported in 2015-2016, some with neurological disorders.

Methods: Arbovirus-related neurologic cases were descriptively analyzed, including neurological syndromes and laboratory results. Read More

PLoS Negl Trop Dis 2018 06 28;12(6):e0006616. Epub 2018 Jun 28.

Sanofi Pasteur, Asia & JPAC Region, Singapore.

Background: Dengue is a febrile illness transmitted by mosquitoes, causing disease across the tropical and sub-tropical world. Antibody prevalence data and serotype distributions describe population-level risk and inform public health decision-making.

Methodology/principal Findings: In this cross-sectional study we used data from a pediatric dengue seroprevalence study to describe historical dengue serotype circulation, according to age and geographic location. Read More

PLoS Negl Trop Dis 2018 06 27;12(6):e0006604. Epub 2018 Jun 27.

Guangzhou Center for Disease Control and Prevention, Guangzhou, Guangdong province, China.

Background: The epidemic tendency of hemorrhagic fever with renal syndrome (HFRS) is on the rise in recent years in Guangzhou. This study aimed to explore the associations between meteorological factors and HFRS epidemic risk in Guangzhou for the period from 2006-2015.

Methods: We obtained data of HFRS cases in Guangzhou from the National Notifiable Disease Report System (NNDRS) during the period of 2006-2015. Read More

Mem Inst Oswaldo Cruz 2018 Jun 25;113(8):e180036. Epub 2018 Jun 25.

Fundação Oswaldo Cruz-Fiocruz, Instituto Oswaldo Cruz, Laboratório de Flavivírus, Rio de Janeiro, RJ, Brasil.

The dengue virus (DENV), of the genus Flavivirus (Flaviviridae), has four antigenically distinct serotypes, of which DENV-3 is classified into five genotypes. Here, we describe the detection of DENV-3 genotype I in sera of a Brazilian patient travelling from Singapore to Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, by using multiplex real-time RT-PCR, DNA sequencing of the whole envelope protein gene, and phylogenetic analysis. The virus shares ancestry with those identified in Bali, Indonesia, in 2015. Read More

Mem Inst Oswaldo Cruz 2018 Jun 25;113(8):e170433. Epub 2018 Jun 25.

Universidade de Brasília, Núcleo de Medicina Tropical, Brasília, DF, Brasil.

Background: The diagnosis of dengue is complex. Until recently, only specialised laboratories were able to confirm dengue infection. However, this has changed with the newly available immunochromatographic rapid tests. Read More

Travel Med Infect Dis 2018 Jul - Aug;24:13-14. Epub 2018 Jun 23.

Public Health and Infection Research and Incubator Group, Faculty of Health Sciences, Universidad Tecnológica de Pereira, Pereira, Risaralda, Colombia; Medical School, Universidad Franz Tamayo/UNIFRANZ, Bolivia. Electronic address:

Indian J Ophthalmol 2018 07;66(7):1017-1019

Department of Molecular Microbioloy, Sankara Nethralaya Referral Laboratory, Chennai, Tamil Nadu, India.

Dengue fever, a mosquito-borne disease commonly found in the tropics, is one of the most prevalent forms of Flavivirus infection in humans. Symptomatically, it is characterized by fever, arthralgia, headache, and rash. Ophthalmic manifestations can involve both the anterior and posterior segment. Read More

PLoS Negl Trop Dis 2018 06 25;12(6):e0006570. Epub 2018 Jun 25.

Emerging Pathogens Institute, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL, USA.

Background: Historically, mosquito control programs successfully helped contain malaria and yellow fever, but recent efforts have been unable to halt the spread of dengue, chikungunya, or Zika, all transmitted by Aedes mosquitoes. Using a dengue transmission model and results from indoor residual spraying (IRS) field experiments, we investigated how IRS-like campaign scenarios could effectively control dengue in an endemic setting.

Methods And Findings: In our model, we found that high levels of household coverage (75% treated once per year), applied proactively before the typical dengue season could reduce symptomatic infections by 89. Read More

Iran J Public Health 2018 May;47(5):742-749

Dept. of Medical Entomology and Vector Control, School of Public Health, Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran.

Background: This study was carried out to determine the infestation of domestic ruminants to ticks in an important livestock-rearing region, located in central part of Iran.

Methods: Ticks were collected from cattle, sheep, and goats and then were identified with appropriate identification keys to species level in two different ecological regions of plains and mountain in 4 seasons in 2015.

Results: Totally 492 ticks from cattle, sheep, and goats in 34 herds were collected. Read More

Sci Total Environ 2018 Sep 9;636:1249-1256. Epub 2018 May 9.

School of Public Health, The University of Adelaide, Adelaide, South Australia 5005, Australia. Electronic address:

This study aims to investigate the associations between meteorological factors and hemorrhagic fever with renal syndrome (HFRS) in 19 cities selected from HFRS high risk areas across different climate zones in three Provinces of China. De-identified daily reports of HFRS in Anhui, Heilongjiang, and Liaoning Provinces for 2005-2014 were obtained from the Chinese Center for Disease Control and Prevention. Daily weather data from each study location were obtained from the China meteorological Data Sharing Service System. Read More

Semin Thromb Hemost 2018 Jun 18. Epub 2018 Jun 18.

Department of Internal Medicine, Radboud Center for Infectious Diseases, Radboud University Medical Center, Nijmegen, The Netherlands.

Thrombocytopenia is a well-known manifestation of acute tropical infectious diseases. The role of platelets in infections has received much attention recently because of their emerging activities in modulation of inflammatory responses, host defense, and vascular integrity. However, while many studies have addressed thrombocytopenia in tropical infections, abnormalities in platelet function have been largely overlooked. Read More

PLoS Negl Trop Dis 2018 06 18;12(6):e0006587. Epub 2018 Jun 18.

Environmental Health Institute, National Environment Agency, Singapore.

Background: Singapore experiences endemic dengue, with 2013 being the largest outbreak year known to date, culminating in 22,170 cases. Given the limited resources available, and that vector control is the key approach for prevention in Singapore, it is important that public health professionals know where resources should be invested in. This study aims to stratify the spatial risk of dengue transmission in Singapore for effective deployment of resources. Read More

PLoS Negl Trop Dis 2018 06 18;12(6):e0006573. Epub 2018 Jun 18.

Department of Tropical Hygiene, Faculty of Tropical Medicine, Mahidol University, Bangkok, Thailand.

Differentiating dengue patients from other acute febrile illness patients is a great challenge among physicians. Several dengue diagnosis methods are recommended by WHO. The application of specific laboratory tests is still limited due to high cost, lack of equipment, and uncertain validity. Read More

Rev Chilena Infectol 2018 04;35(2):176-183

Facultad de Salud Escuela de Medicina, Universidad Industrial de Santander, Bucaramanga, Santander, Colombia.

Background: Plasma viremia is a factor whose role in the severity of dengue virus infection has been widely discussed in recent years, with divergent results found in the multiple contexts evaluated.

Methods: A systematic review of the literature using the Scopus, EBSCOhost, SpringerLink, Lilacs and Scielo databases was conducted. For inclusion in the review there were considered studies that evaluated the relationship between plasma viral load and clinical manifestations or severity of the disease. Read More

Gastroenterol Hepatol Bed Bench 2018 ;11(2):91-100

Department of Epidemiology, School of Public Health, Hamadan University of Medical Sciences, Hamadan, Iran.

Aim: Present study aimed to systematically review and quantitatively synthesize published data about the prevalence of Hepatitis B Virus (HBV) infection among high risk groups in Iran.

Background: Determining true burden of Hepatitis B Virus (HBV) infection among high-risk groups relies on knowledge of occurrence measures such as prevalence rate. There is no conclusive and comprehensive data regarding to prevalence of HBV infection among high risk groups in Iran. Read More

PLoS Negl Trop Dis 2018 06 11;12(6):e0006568. Epub 2018 Jun 11.

Department of Biological Sciences, University of Notre Dame, Notre Dame, IN, United States of America.

Populations of Aedes aegypti naturally exhibit variable susceptibility to dengue viruses. This natural variation can be impacted by nutritional stress resulting from larval-stage crowding, indicating the influence of environment components on the adult mosquito immune response. In particular, larval crowding was previously shown to reduce the susceptibility of adult females of a Trinidad field isolate of A. Read More

PLoS Negl Trop Dis 2018 06 8;12(6):e0006461. Epub 2018 Jun 8.

Ministry of Health and Sanitation, National Public Health Agency, Freetown, Sierra Leone.

Background: During the West Africa Ebola outbreak, cultural practices have been described as hindering response efforts. The acceptance of control measures improved during the outbreak, but little is known about how and why this occurred. We conducted a qualitative study in two administrative districts of Sierra Leone to understand Ebola survivor, community, and health worker perspectives on Ebola control measures. Read More

PLoS Negl Trop Dis 2018 06 7;12(6):e0006462. Epub 2018 Jun 7.

Centro de Pesquisas René Rachou, FIOCRUZ, Belo Horizonte, Minas Gerais, Brazil.

In this investigation, machine-enhanced techniques were applied to bring about scientific insights to identify a minimum set of phenotypic/functional memory-related biomarkers for post-vaccination follow-up upon yellow fever (YF) vaccination. For this purpose, memory status of circulating T-cells (Naïve/early-effector/Central-Memory/Effector-Memory) and B-cells (Naïve/non-Classical-Memory/Classical-Memory) along with the cytokine profile (IFN/TNF/IL-5/IL-10) were monitored before-NV(day0) and at distinct time-points after 17DD-YF primary vaccination-PV(day30-45); PV(year1-9) and PV(year10-11). A set of biomarkers (eEfCD4; EMCD4; CMCD19; EMCD8; IFNCD4; IL-5CD8; TNFCD4; IFNCD8; TNFCD8; IL-5CD19; IL-5CD4) were observed in PV(day30-45), but not in NV(day0), with most of them still observed in PV(year1-9). Read More

Viral Immunol 2018 Jun 7. Epub 2018 Jun 7.

1 Section of Arbovirology and Hemorrhagic Fevers, Evandro Chagas Institute , Ananindeua, Pará, Brazil .

Zika virus (ZIKV) is an arbovirus belonging to the genus Flavivirus (Flaviviridae). ZIKV infection is associated with alterations in various organs, including the liver, lungs, and kidneys. Studies on the influence of posttranscriptional control on viral infections have demonstrated that microRNAs (miRNAs) interfere with different stages of the replicative cycle of several viruses and may influence the disease outcome. Read More

PLoS Negl Trop Dis 2018 06 6;12(6):e0006554. Epub 2018 Jun 6.

Center for Disease Surveillance of PLA, Institute of Disease Control and Prevention of PLA, Beijing, China.

Background: Hemorrhagic fever with renal syndrome (HFRS) is a rodent-associated zoonosis caused by hantavirus. The HFRS was initially detected in northeast China in 1931, and since 1955 it has been detected in many regions of the country. Global climate dynamics influences HFRS spread in a complex nonlinear way. Read More

Cochrane Database Syst Rev 2018 06 5;6:CD012713. Epub 2018 Jun 5.

Department of Clinical Sciences, Liverpool School of Tropical Medicine, Pembroke Place, Liverpool, UK, L3 5QA.

Background: Crimean Congo haemorrhagic fever (CCHF) is a tick-borne disease that occurs in parts of Asia, Europe and Africa. Since 2000 the infection has caused epidemics in Turkey, Iran, Russia, Uganda and Pakistan. Good-quality general supportive medical care helps reduce mortality. Read More

PLoS Negl Trop Dis 2018 06 4;12(6):e0006538. Epub 2018 Jun 4.

Laboratório de Vírus, Departamento de Microbiologia, Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais, Belo Horizonte, Minas Gerais, Brazil.

Background: Yellow fever (YF) is endemic in the Brazilian Amazon Basin, and sporadic outbreaks take place outside the endemic area in Brazil. Since 2016, YF epidemics have been occurring in Southeast Brazil, with more than 1,900 human cases and more than 1,600 epizooties of non-human primates (NHPs) reported until April 2018. Previous studies have demonstrated that Yellow fever virus (YFV) causing outbreaks in 2017 formed a monophyletic group. Read More

PLoS Negl Trop Dis 2018 05 31;12(5):e0006430. Epub 2018 May 31.

Department of Medical Microbiology, School of Biomedical and Laboratory Sciences, College of Medicine and Health Sciences, University of Gondar, Gondar, Ethiopia.

Background: Dengue is one of the most serious and rapidly spreading arboviral diseases in the world. Despite many acute febrile illnesses in Ethiopia, the burden of illness due to dengue in the country is largely unknown. Thus, the present study aimed to provide the first baseline data on seroprevalence and associated risk factors of dengue virus (DENV) infection in the country. Read More

PLoS Negl Trop Dis 2018 05 31;12(5):e0006505. Epub 2018 May 31.

Emerging Pathogens Institute, University of Florida, Gainesville, Florida, United States of America.

In the context of recent arbovirus epidemics, questions about the frequency of simultaneous infection of patients with different arbovirus species have been raised. In 2014, a major Chikungunya virus (CHIKV) epidemic impacted the Caribbean and South America. As part of ongoing screening of schoolchildren presenting with acute undifferentiated febrile illness in rural Haiti, we used RT-PCR to identify CHIKV infections in 82 of 100 children with this diagnosis during May-August 2014. Read More

Lancet Planet Health 2017 07 7;1(4):e126-e127. Epub 2017 Jul 7.

Mater Research Institute, University of Queensland, South Brisbane, QLD, Australia.

PLoS Negl Trop Dis 2018 05 29;12(5):e0006381. Epub 2018 May 29.

Institute of Aquaculture, University of Stirling, Stirling, Scotland, United Kingdom.

Background: 4 one-step, real-time, reverse transcription loop-mediated isothermal amplification (RT-LAMP) assays were developed for the detection of dengue virus (DENV) serotypes by considering 2,056 full genome DENV sequences. DENV1 and DENV2 RT-LAMP assays were validated with 31 blood and 11 serum samples from Tanzania, Senegal, Sudan and Mauritania. DENV3 and DENV4 RT-LAMP assays were validated with 25 serum samples from Cambodia. Read More

PLoS Negl Trop Dis 2018 05 29;12(5):e0006525. Epub 2018 May 29.

Laboratório de Pesquisa em Virologia, Departamento de Doenças Dermatológicas, Infecciosas e Parasitárias, Faculdade de Medicina de São José do Rio Preto, SP, Brazil.

The dynamics of dengue virus (DENV) circulation depends on serotype, genotype and lineage replacement and turnover. In São José do Rio Preto, Brazil, we observed that the L6 lineage of DENV-1 (genotype V) remained the dominant circulating lineage even after the introduction of the L1 lineage. We investigated viral fitness and immunogenicity of the L1 and L6 lineages and which factors interfered with the dynamics of DENV epidemics. Read More

J Med Primatol 2018 May 25. Epub 2018 May 25.

Research Institute of Experimental Pathology and Therapy of the Abkhazian Academy of Sciences, Sukhum, Abkhazia.

The data characterizing spontaneous infections of Old World monkeys: measles, poliomyelitis, hepatitis A (HPA), encephalomyocarditis, coronavirus infection, simian hemorrhagic fever (SHF), are presented. The experimental infections were reproduced with the isolated pathogens. On these models, pathogenesis and epidemiology of these diseases were studied. Read More

PLoS Negl Trop Dis 2018 05 24;12(5):e0006530. Epub 2018 May 24.

Department of Immunology and Infectious Diseases, Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health, Boston, MA, United States of America.

Background: Ebola virus (EBOV) caused more than 11,000 deaths during the 2013-2016 epidemic in West Africa without approved vaccines or immunotherapeutics. Despite its high lethality in some individuals, EBOV infection can produce little to no symptoms in others. A better understanding of the immune responses in individuals who experienced minimally symptomatic and asymptomatic infection could aid the development of more effective vaccines and antivirals against EBOV and related filoviruses. Read More

Braz J Med Biol Res 2018 21;51(6):e7221. Epub 2018 May 21.

Departamento de Clínica Médica, Faculdade de Medicina de Ribeirão Preto, Universidade de São Paulo, Ribeirão Preto, SP, Brasil.

Clinical manifestations of Zika, dengue, and chikungunya virus infections are very similar, making it difficult to reach a diagnosis based only on clinical grounds. In addition, there is an intense cross-reactivity between antibodies directed to Zika virus and other flaviviruses, and an accurate Zika diagnosis is best achieved by real-time RT-PCR. However, some real-time RT-PCR show better performance than others. Read More

N Engl J Med 2018 Jun 23;378(25):2353-2355. Epub 2018 May 23.

Dr. Haug is an international correspondent for the Journal.

PLoS Negl Trop Dis 2018 05 21;12(5):e0006498. Epub 2018 May 21.

Programa de Biologia Molecular e Biotecnologia, Instituto de Bioquímica Médica Leopoldo de Meis, Universidade Federal do Rio de Janeiro, Rio de Janeiro, Brasil.

Aedes aegypti is the vector of some of the most important vector-borne diseases like dengue, chikungunya, zika and yellow fever, affecting millions of people worldwide. The cellular processes that follow a blood meal in the mosquito midgut are directly associated with pathogen transmission. We studied the homeostatic response of the midgut against oxidative stress, as well as bacterial and dengue virus (DENV) infections, focusing on the proliferative ability of the intestinal stem cells (ISC). Read More

Science 2018 May;360(6390):694-695

Rev Soc Bras Med Trop 2018 Mar-Apr;51(2):168-173

Centro de Pesquisa em Virologia, Faculdade de Medicina de Ribeirão Preto, Universidade de São Paulo, Ribeirão Preto, SP, Brasil.

Introduction: Dengue virus (DENV) is the most important arthropod-borne viral disease worldwide with an estimated 50 million infections occurring each year.

Methods: In this study, we present a flow cytometry assay (FACS) for diagnosing DENV, and compare its results with those of the non-structural protein 1 (NS1) immunochromatographic assay and reverse transcriptase polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR).

Results: All three assays identified 29. Read More

Nat Commun 2018 May 14;9(1):1884. Epub 2018 May 14.

Department of Microbiology and Immunobiology, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, 02115, USA.

While five arenaviruses cause human hemorrhagic fevers in the Western Hemisphere, only Junin virus (JUNV) has a vaccine. The GP1 subunit of their envelope glycoprotein binds transferrin receptor 1 (TfR1) using a surface that substantially varies in sequence among the viruses. As such, receptor-mimicking antibodies described to date are type-specific and lack the usual breadth associated with this mode of neutralization. Read More

Surg Pathol Clin 2018 Jun 26;11(2):251-266. Epub 2018 Mar 26.

Department of Pathology, Surgical Pathology, University of Sao Paulo School of Medicine, Sao Paulo, Brazil. Electronic address:

From the standpoint of the surgical pathologist "hepatitis" is defined as the set of histologic patterns of lesions found in livers infected by hepatotropic viruses, by non-hepatotrophic viruses leading to liver inflammation in the context of systemic infection, or due to an autoimmune disease, drug, or toxin involving the liver. This article is centered on the histologic patterns of injury in acute viral hepatitis, encompassing the hepatotropic viruses A, B, C, D, and E and the "icteric hemorrhagic fevers" (dengue, hantavirus, yellow fever). A brief mention of viruses causing hepatitis in immunosuppressed patients also is presented. Read More

PLoS Negl Trop Dis 2018 05 10;12(5):e0006451. Epub 2018 May 10.

Department of Biology, Stanford University, Stanford, California, United States of America.

Dengue, chikungunya, and Zika virus epidemics transmitted by Aedes aegypti mosquitoes have recently (re)emerged and spread throughout the Americas, Southeast Asia, the Pacific Islands, and elsewhere. Understanding how environmental conditions affect epidemic dynamics is critical for predicting and responding to the geographic and seasonal spread of disease. Specifically, we lack a mechanistic understanding of how seasonal variation in temperature affects epidemic magnitude and duration. Read More

J Virol 2018 07 29;92(14). Epub 2018 Jun 29.

Microbiology and Infectious Diseases and Eye & Vision Health, College of Medicine and Public Health, Flinders University, Adelaide, South Australia, Australia

Severe dengue virus (DENV) infection is associated with overactivity of the complement alternative pathway (AP) in patient studies. Here, the molecular changes in components of the AP during DENV infection were investigated. mRNA for factor H (FH), a major negative regulator of the AP, was significantly increased in DENV-infected endothelial cells (EC) and macrophages, but, in contrast, production of extracellular FH protein was not. Read More

N Engl J Med 2018 May;378(19):1825-1833

From the Departments of Medicine (M.L.P., E.P.H.) and Pathology (R.K.F., K.C.C.), Massachusetts General Hospital, and the Departments of Medicine (M.L.P., E.P.H.) and Pathology (R.K.F., K.C.C.), Harvard Medical School - both in Boston.

PLoS Negl Trop Dis 2018 05 9;12(5):e0006474. Epub 2018 May 9.

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Viral Special Pathogens Branch, Atlanta, GA, United States of America.

Rift Valley fever virus (RVFV) is an important mosquito-borne veterinary and human pathogen that has caused large outbreaks of severe disease throughout Africa and the Arabian Peninsula. Currently, no licensed vaccine or therapeutics exists to treat this potentially deadly disease. The explosive nature of RVFV outbreaks and the severe consequences of its accidental or intentional introduction into RVFV-free areas provide the impetus for the development of novel vaccine candidates for use in both livestock and humans. Read More

PLoS Negl Trop Dis 2018 05 4;12(5):e0006460. Epub 2018 May 4.

Viral Special Pathogens Branch, US CDC, Atlanta, GA, United States of America.

Rift Valley fever virus is an arbovirus that affects both livestock and humans throughout Africa and in the Middle East. Despite its endemicity throughout Africa, it is a rare event to identify an infected individual during the acute phase of the disease and an even rarer event to collect serial blood samples from the affected patient. Severely affected patients can present with hemorrhagic manifestations of disease. Read More

PLoS One 2018 4;13(5):e0196811. Epub 2018 May 4.

Health Metrics Unit, Sahlgrenska Academy, University of Gothenburg, Gothenburg, Sweden.

Background: Dengue outbreaks are increasing in frequency over space and time, affecting people's health and burdening resource-constrained health systems. The ability to detect early emerging outbreaks is key to mounting an effective response. The early warning and response system (EWARS) is a toolkit that provides countries with early-warning systems for efficient and cost-effective local responses. Read More

PLoS Pathog 2018 05 3;14(5):e1006965. Epub 2018 May 3.

Department of Biological Sciences, Eck Institute for Global Health, University of Notre Dame, Notre Dame, IN, United States.

Despite estimates that, each year, as many as 300 million dengue virus (DENV) infections result in either no perceptible symptoms (asymptomatic) or symptoms that are sufficiently mild to go undetected by surveillance systems (inapparent), it has been assumed that these infections contribute little to onward transmission. However, recent blood-feeding experiments with Aedes aegypti mosquitoes showed that people with asymptomatic and pre-symptomatic DENV infections are capable of infecting mosquitoes. To place those findings into context, we used models of within-host viral dynamics and human demographic projections to (1) quantify the net infectiousness of individuals across the spectrum of DENV infection severity and (2) estimate the fraction of transmission attributable to people with different severities of disease. Read More

PLoS Negl Trop Dis 2018 05 3;12(5):e0006412. Epub 2018 May 3.

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Division of High Consequence Pathogens and Pathology, Viral Special Pathogens Branch, Atlanta, Georgia, United States of America.

Background: Rift Valley fever (RVF) is a zoonotic disease caused by Rift Valley fever virus (RVFV) found in Africa and the Middle East. Outbreaks can cause extensive morbidity and mortality in humans and livestock. Following the diagnosis of two acute human RVF cases in Kabale district, Uganda, we conducted a serosurvey to estimate RVFV seroprevalence in humans and livestock and to identify associated risk factors. Read More

PLoS Negl Trop Dis 2018 05 3;12(5):e0006349. Epub 2018 May 3.

School of Biosciences, University of Kent, Canterbury, United Kingdom.

In 2014, the world witnessed the largest Ebolavirus outbreak in recorded history. The subsequent humanitarian effort spurred extensive research, significantly enhancing our understanding of ebolavirus replication and pathogenicity. The main functions of each ebolavirus protein have been studied extensively since the discovery of the virus in 1976; however, the recent expansion of ebolavirus research has led to the discovery of new protein functions. Read More