Tick-borne encephalitis virus (TBEV) is the most prevalent tick-borne viral disease in Europe and Asia. There are three main subtypes of the virus: European, Siberian, and Far Eastern, each of which having distinctive ecology, clinical presentation, and geographic distribution. In recent years, other TBEV subtypes have been described, namely the Himalayan and Baikalian subtypes.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFMethods Mol Biol
December 2024
One of the key interventions against infection is immunization, including an increasing focus on development of vaccines against pathogenic bunyaviruses. Whilst different vaccine development approaches exist, recombinant viral vaccines have a strong safety record, are rapid to produce, are cost-effective, and have been demonstrated to be rolled out in response to outbreaks, including in low- and middle-income countries. One viral vector, modified Vaccinia Ankara (MVA), has been used to develop vaccine candidates against Crimean-Congo Haemorrhagic Fever (CCHF) virus through incorporation of the nucleoprotein (NP) and glycoprotein (GP) regions, with the former candidate having now progressed to being the first vaccine against CCHF virus to enter Phase 1 clinical trials.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFThe Arenaviridae family of segmented RNA viruses contains nearly 70 species with several associated with fatal haemorrhagic fevers, including Lassa, Lujo and Junin viruses. Lymphocytic choriomeningitis arenavirus (LCMV) is associated with fatal neurologic disease in humans and additionally represents a tractable model for studying arenavirus biology. Within cultured cells, a high proportion of LCMV spread is between directly neighbouring cells, suggesting infectivity may pass through intercellular connections, bypassing the canonical extracellular route involving egress from the plasma membrane.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFBackground: Crimean-Congo haemorrhagic fever (CCHF) is a lethal acute viral zoonosis with a case fatality rate of 5-50%. Due to the potential of human-to human transmission of the disease, healthcare workers (HCWs) are at risk of occupational exposure to CCHF virus. Little is known about CCHF virus route of transmission and risks in Iranian HCWs.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFCrimean-Congo haemorrhagic fever (CCHF) is a widely distributed and potentially fatal tick-borne viral disease with no licensed specific treatments or vaccines. In 2019, WHO published an advanced draft of a research and development roadmap for CCHF that prioritised the development and deployment of the medical countermeasures most needed by CCHF-affected countries. This Personal View presents updated CCHF research and development priorities and is the product of broad consultation with a working group of 20 leading experts in 2023-24.
View Article and Find Full Text PDF