Protozoal giant viruses: agents potentially infectious to humans and animals

Hepatitis E viruses in humans and animals.

Hepatitis E virus (HEV) is an emerging pathogen belonging to a newly recognized family of RNA viruses (Hepeviridae). HEV is an important enterically transmitted human pathogen with a worldwide distribution. It can cause sporadic cases as well as large epidemics of acute hepatitis. Epidemics are primarily waterborne in areas where water supplies are contaminated with HEV of human origin. There i...

Modeling Infectious Diseases in Humans and Animals

Since the publication in 1991 of Anderson and May’s seminal work1, mathematical modelling of infectious diseases has become fi rmly established as one of the key tools available to epidemiologists to understand, predict and control the spread of infectious diseases in human, animal and plant populations. Accordingly, the fi eld has undergone rapid growth, stimulated by high profi le outbreaks s...

Bats, viruses, emerging diseases and humans

This paper reviews the unique characteristics of bats, their important roles in providing ecosystem services, their viruses in relation to emerging diseases. Bats, as flying mammals, are the second largest order following rodents, with a wide variety (over 1400 identified species among 230 genera of 21 families in the world) due to their flying power and echolocation. Despite their importance a...

Social Learning in Humans, Animals and Agents

We want to build animated characters and robots capable of rich social interactions with humans and each other, and who are able to learn by observing those around them. An increasing amount of evidence suggests that, in animals and humans, the ability to learn by watching others, and in particular, the ability to imitate, could be crucial precursors to the development of appropriate social beh...

Zoonoses: Infectious Diseases Transmissible From Animals to Humans, Fourth Edition.