A deadly viral illness is exploding in West Africa. Researchers are scrambling to figure out why
Reporting for this story was supported by the Pulitzer Center.
Irrua, Nigeria, and Kenema, Sierra Leone—
Sitting on a bench outside the Irrua Specialist Teaching Hospital (ISTH) in Edo state in southwestern Nigeria in September 2023, Muhammed Luqman Dagana recounted his ordeal earlier in the year with Lassa fever, a deadly hemorrhagic disease of West Africa. At first the 33-year-old wasn’t alarmed—his fever, headache, body aches, and cough were innocuous enough. A doctor at his local clinic gave him antibiotics for typhoid fever and antimalarial drugs. But his symptoms persisted, so he tried anoth...
Source: ScienceNOW - February 22, 2024 Category: Science Source Type: news
CDC Helps Identify Virus Behind Hemorrhagic Fever Outbreak In Bolivia
The culprit was a hemorrhagic fever-causing arenavirus called Chapare virus, not seen for nearly two decades. (Source: Forbes.com Healthcare News)
Source: Forbes.com Healthcare News - November 22, 2020 Category: Pharmaceuticals Authors: Andrea Anderson, Contributor Tags: Healthcare /healthcare Innovation /innovation Science /science Source Type: news
Lassa Fever: Annual Epidemiological Report for 2018; Surveillance Report
Source: European Union, European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC). Published: 4/30/2020.
This two-page document reports that no cases of Lassa fever or other viral hemorrhagic fevers caused by arenaviruses for were reported in the European Union/European Economic Area for 2018. The report is based on data for 2018 retrieved from The European Surveillance System (TESSy) on September 10, 2019.
(PDF) (Source: Disaster Lit: Resource Guide for Disaster Medicine and Public Health)
Source: Disaster Lit: Resource Guide for Disaster Medicine and Public Health - April 30, 2020 Category: International Medicine & Public Health Source Type: news
Surveillance Report: Lassa Fever; Annual Epidemiological Report for 2017
Source: European Union, European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC). Published: 6/2019.
This three-page report on cases of Lassa fever is based on data for 2017 retrieved from The European Surveillance System (TESSy) on December 11, 2018. In 2017, no cases of Lassa fever or other infections by arenaviruses responsible for viral hemorrhagic fevers were reported in the European Union/European Economic Area.
(PDF) (Source: Disaster Lit: Resource Guide for Disaster Medicine and Public Health)
Source: Disaster Lit: Resource Guide for Disaster Medicine and Public Health - June 1, 2019 Category: International Medicine & Public Health Source Type: news
Scientists ID protein exploited by virus ravaging West Africa
(University of California - San Diego) New research has uncovered a protein enabling the replication of arenaviruses, pathogens now widespread in West Africa that are carried by rodents and can infect humans with lethal fevers. The research identified DDX3 as a key factor promoting arenavirus multiplication through its unexpected ability to promote viral RNA synthesis and dismantle normal human immune system defenses. The study may pave the way to new therapeutic treatments for arenaviruses and hemorrhagic fever. (Source: EurekAlert! - Infectious and Emerging Diseases)
Source: EurekAlert! - Infectious and Emerging Diseases - July 12, 2018 Category: Infectious Diseases Source Type: news
Lassa Fever: Annual Epidemiological Report for 2015
European Union, European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control. 11/2017 This three-page report is based on data for 2015, when no cases of Lassa fever or other infections by arenaviruses responsible for viral hemorrhagic fevers were reported in the European Union/European Economic Area. It provides information on methods, epidemiology, discussion facts, and public health implications. (PDF) (Source: Disaster Lit: Resource Guide for Disaster Medicine and Public Health)
Source: Disaster Lit: Resource Guide for Disaster Medicine and Public Health - April 19, 2018 Category: International Medicine & Public Health Authors: The U.S. National Library of Medicine Source Type: news
Structural basis for antibody-mediated neutralization of Lassa virus
The arenavirus Lassa causes severe hemorrhagic fever and a significant disease burden in West Africa every year. The glycoprotein, GPC, is the sole antigen expressed on the viral surface and the critical target for antibody-mediated neutralization. Here we present the crystal structure of the trimeric, prefusion ectodomain of Lassa GP bound to a neutralizing antibody from a human survivor at 3.2-angstrom resolution. The antibody extensively anchors two monomers together at the base of the trimer, and biochemical analysis suggests that it neutralizes by inhibiting conformational changes required for entry. This work illumin...
Source: ScienceNOW - June 1, 2017 Category: Science Authors: Hastie, K. M., Zandonatti, M. A., Kleinfelter, L. M., Heinrich, M. L., Rowland, M. M., Chandran, K., Branco, L. M., Robinson, J. E., Garry, R. F., Saphire, E. O. Tags: Biochemistry r-articles Source Type: news
Reverse Genetics Approaches to Control Arenavirus
Several arenavirus cause hemorrhagic fever disease in humans and pose a significant public health problem in their endemic regions. To date, no licensed vaccines are available to combat human arenavirus infections, and anti-arenaviral drug therapy is limited to an off-label use of ribavirin that is only partially effective. The development of arenavirus reverse genetics approaches provides investigators with a novel and powerful approach for the investigation of the arenavirus molecular and cell biology. The use of cell-based minigenome systems has allowed examining the cis- and trans-acting factors involved in arenavirus ...
Source: Springer protocols feed by Immunology - April 8, 2016 Category: Allergy & Immunology Source Type: news
Single-Vector, Single-Injection Recombinant Vesicular Stomatitis Virus Vaccines Against High-Containment Viruses
There are many avenues for making an effective vaccine against viruses. Depending on the virus these can include one of the following: inactivation of whole virions; attenuation of viruses; recombinant viral proteins; non-replication-competent virus particles; or surrogate virus vector systems such as vesicular stomatitis virus (VSV). VSV is a prototypic enveloped animal virus that has been used for over four decades to study virus replication, entry, and assembly due to its ability to replicate to high titers in a wide variety of mammalian and insect cells. The use of reverse genetics to recover infectious and single-cycl...
Source: Springer protocols feed by Immunology - April 8, 2016 Category: Allergy & Immunology Source Type: news
Lassa Fever: Signs, Symptoms, Treatment & Prevention
Lassa fever is an acute viral illness that occurs in west Africa. The illness was discovered in the year 1969 when two missionary nurses died from it in Nigeria. The virus is named after the town in Nigeria where the illness first occurred. The virus is a member of the virus family, 'Arenaviridae,' and is a single-stranded RNA virus; it is, 'zoonotic,' or animal-borne. Lassa fever is endemic in parts of west Africa, to include the following areas: (Source: Disabled World)
Source: Disabled World - June 2, 2015 Category: Disability Tags: Health and Disability Source Type: news
Light zaps viruses: How photosensitization can stop viruses from infecting cells
A UCLA-led team of researchers has found evidence that photosensitizing a virus's membrane covering can inhibit its ability to enter cells and potentially lead to the development of stronger, cheaper medications to fight a host of tough viruses.
The UCLA AIDS Institute study, published in the February issue of the Journal of Virology, is part of ongoing research on a compound called LJ001, a "broad-spectrum" antiviral that can attack a wide range of microbes.
The current paper advances the science by showing that the process of photosensitization — heightening a biological organism's sensitivity to...
Source: UCLA Newsroom: Health Sciences - February 28, 2014 Category: Universities & Medical Training Source Type: news
ERGIC-53's role in virus propagation suggested by bleeding symptom
Rodent-borne pathogens like hantaviruses and arenaviruses are simple, but resourceful, and very successful at propagating. Due to a tiny genome generating a mere four proteins compared to humans' thousands, they rely on human biological machinery to do their replication dirty work, facilitating infection, plus a high mortality rate. Vermont researchers have discovered a mechanism that when targeted, may stop these deadly viruses in their tracks.A new study published in Cell Host & Microbe by the University of Vermont's Jason Botten, Ph.D. (Source: Health News from Medical News Today)
Source: Health News from Medical News Today - November 17, 2013 Category: Consumer Health News Tags: Infectious Diseases / Bacteria / Viruses Source Type: news
