Emerging Viruses

Infectious diseases are an ever present threat to humans. In recent years, the threat of these emerging viruses has been greater than ever before in human history, due in large part to global travel by larger numbers of people, and to a lesser extent to disruptions in the interface between developed and undeveloped areas. The emergence of new deadly viruses in human populations during recent decades has confirmed this risk. They remain the third leading cause of deaths in the US and the second world-wide. Emerging Viruses in Human Populations provides a comprehensive review of viruses that are emerging or that threaten to emerge among human populations in the twenty-first century. It discusses the apprehension over emerging viruses that has intensified due to concerns about bioterrorism. * Presents the history of emerging viruses * Includes chapters on SARS, Pandemic Threat of Avian Influenza Viruses, West Nile Virus, Monkeypox Virus, Hantavirus, Nipah Virus and Hendra Virus, Japanese Encephalitis Virus, Dengue and Crimean-Congo Hemorrhagic Fever Viruses * Discusses surveillance for newly emerging diseases

Horowitz (public health author) presents thoroughly researched information in his exploration into the origins of the HIV and Ebola viruses. His bias toward the theory that HIV was introduced into the general population by vaccine experiments conducted in New York City and Africa, is apparent. He generalizes from this thesis that the AIDS epidemic may have been deliberately deployed as a genocide tactic as part of the CIA foreign policy activity in Central Africa. The volume is characteristic of a "conspiracy genre," and as such presents its facts with an eye toward a predisposed conclusion. Annotation copyright by Book News, Inc., Portland, OR

New epidemics such as AIDS and "mad cow" disease have dramatized the need to explore the factors underlying rapid viral evolution and emerging viruses. This comprehensive volume is the first to describe this multifaceted new field. It places viral evolution and emergence in a historical context, describes the interaction of viruses with hosts, and details the advances in molecular biology and epidemiology that have provided the tools necessary to track developing viral epidemics and to detect new viruses far more successfully than could be done in the recent past. This unique book also lucidly details case histories and offers practical suggestions for the prevention of future epidemics. The contributors are leading authorities in their disciplines, and were selected both for their expert knowledge and for their ability to define and elucidate the fundamental issues. The book is highly accessible and has been written for a wide audience that includes virologists, public health authorities, medical anthropologists, evolutionary biologists, geneticists, infectious disease specialists, and social scientists interested in medical and health issues.

The Role of Animals in Emerging Viral Diseases presents what is currently known about the role of animals in the emergence or re-emergence of viruses including HIV-AIDS, SARS, Ebola, avian flu, swine flu, and rabies. It presents the structure, genome, and methods of transmission that influence emergence and considers non-viral factors that favor emergence, such as animal domestication, human demography, population growth, human behavior, and land-use changes. When viruses jump species, the result can be catastrophic, causing disease and death in humans and animals. These zoonotic outbreaks reflect several factors, including increased mobility of human populations, changes in demography and environmental changes due to globalization. The threat of new, emerging viruses and the fact that there are no vaccines for the most common zoonotic viruses drive research in the biology and ecology of zoonotic transmission. In this book, specialists in 11 emerging zoonotic viruses present detailed information on each virus's structure, molecular biology, current geographic distribution, and method of transmission. The book discusses the impact of virus emergence by considering the ratio of mortality, morbidity, and asymptomatic infection and assesses methods for predicting, monitoring, mitigating, and controlling viral disease emergence. Analyzes the structure, molecular biology, current geographic distribution and methods of transmission of 10 viruses Provides a clear perspective on how events in wildlife, livestock, and even companion animals have contributed to virus outbreaks and epidemics Exemplifies the "one world, one health, one medicine" approach to emerging disease by examining events in animal populations as precursors to what could affect humans

Emerging diseases are a major threat to modern societies, impacting individual welfare as well as economic development. The trend of newly emerging diseases has accelerated in the last two decades to such an extent that a new emerging infection is described at least once a year. The majority of such threats to modern society have been due to emergent viruses. This series of lecture notes provides grounding in understanding the drivers of disease emergence, the molecular processes which allow for virus diversity, the response of the host and environmental factors responsible for changing the balance between host and pathogen. Groups of viruses are described, each selected to illustrate certain features of disease emergence. These examples best illustrate how from past experience we may best be able to predict future outbreaks of novel diseases. Expecting the unexpected is a major challenge for health care personnel and public health officials alike, and the stakes have never been higher. As such, this book provides a timely overview of how best to prepare for disease emergence as it intends to increase awareness of how vulnerable modern society is in preparedness for such events.

The chapters in this topical volume of Advances in Microbiology, Infectious Diseases and Public Health present exciting, insightful observations on emerging viral infections like influenza, Middle East respiratory syndrome, or mosquito-transmitted diseases, as well as the potential of social media in preventing and fighting infectious diseases. This rapidly developing field of study, which involves interdisciplinary and challenging research conducted in both industrialized and limited-resource countries, can yield vital information for the life and social sciences, for public health, and for healthcare in general. The aim of this volume is to contribute to the development of knowledge on emerging infections in the endless struggle between viruses and man. The chapters selected are not intended as a systematic collection of all emerging infections, but instead highlight recent discoveries and provide insights on today’s hot topics. The book offers a valuable resource for all scientists working in the field of emerging viral infections and possible vaccines, as well as for laboratory and medical staff whose work involves preventing, controlling and combatting infectious diseases.

In the past half century, deadly disease outbreaks caused by novel viruses of animal origin - Nipah virus in Malaysia, Hendra virus in Australia, Hantavirus in the United States, Ebola virus in Africa, along with HIV (human immunodeficiency virus), several influenza subtypes, and the SARS (sudden acute respiratory syndrome) and MERS (Middle East respiratory syndrome) coronaviruses - have underscored the urgency of understanding factors influencing viral disease emergence and spread. Emerging Viral Diseases is the summary of a public workshop hosted in March 2014 to examine factors driving the appearance, establishment, and spread of emerging, re-emerging and novel viral diseases; the global health and economic impacts of recently emerging and novel viral diseases in humans; and the scientific and policy approaches to improving domestic and international capacity to detect and respond to global outbreaks of infectious disease. This report is a record of the presentations and discussion of the event.

Emerging and Reemerging Viral Pathogens: Applied Virology Approaches Related to Human, Animal and Environmental Pathogens, Volume Two presents new research information on viruses and their impact on the scientific community. It provides a reference book on certain viruses in humans, animals and vegetal, along with a comprehensive discussion on interspecies interactions. The book then looks at the drug, vaccine and bioinformatical strategies that can be used against these viruses, giving the reader a clear understanding of transmission. The book's end goal is to create awareness that the appearance of newly transmissible pathogens is a global risk that requires shared/adoptable policies for prevention and control. Covers most emerging viral disease in humans, animals and plants Provides the most advanced tools and techniques in molecular virology and the modeling of viruses Creates awareness that the appearance of new transmissible pathogens is a global risk Highlights the need to adopt shared policies for the prevention and control of infectious diseases