A new arbovirus in northern Australia

A New Species of Mesonivirus from the Northern Territory, Australia

Here we describe Casuarina virus (CASV), a new virus in the family Mesoniviridae. This is the first report of a mesonivirus in Australia, which extends the geographical range of this virus family to 3 continents. The virus was isolated in 2010 from Coquillettidia xanthogaster mosquitoes during surveillance in the suburbs of Darwin, the capital of the Northern Territory. Cryo-electron microscopy...

Evolution of Mosquito-Based Arbovirus Surveillance Systems in Australia

Control of arboviral disease is dependent on the sensitive and timely detection of elevated virus activity or the identification of emergent or exotic viruses. The emergence of Japanese encephalitis virus (JEV) in northern Australia revealed numerous problems with performing arbovirus surveillance in remote locations. A sentinel pig programme detected JEV activity, although there were a number ...

The Northern Territory, Australia.

THE NORTHERN TERRITORY Situated in the centre of Australia, the Northern Territory is the third largest state in Australia and is roughly the size of France, Spain and Italy combined (figures 1 and 2). It has a unique environment that ranges from arid desert down south to tropical regions on the coast in the north. The Northern Territory is often considered the quintessential Australian outback...

Northern Australia , whither the mercury ?

Horticultural experimentation in northern Australia reconsidered

Did the banana, yam and taro arrive in Australia at the hands of Europeans or come across the Torres Strait 2000 years before? Reviewing the evidence from herbaria histories and anthropology, the authors propose a ‘hierarchy of hypotheses’ and consider a still earlier option, that these food plants were potentially grown in Australia at least 8000 years ago, while it was still joined to New Gui...