The serological diagnosis of infection by flaviviruses is complicated by the presence of flavivirus cross-reactive antibodies that produce false-positive results for flavivirus infections, especially in regions where more than one virus is endemic. Current diagnostic reagents for tick-borne flavivirus infection have been found to cross-react with yellow fever- or dengue virus-positive sera. Thi...

The viral hemorrhagic fever viruses represent a unique group of viruses that can produce large outbreaks of both animal and human disease and produce severe, highly fatal, human illnesses. The viral hemorrhagic fever viruses display a great deal of diversity in their genetic organization, vectors for transmission, and geographic distribution. They share common features in being able to induce a...

Received: Revised: Accepted: January 11, 2010 February 04, 2010 February 08, 2010

A number of mosquito-borne viruses in the family Flaviviridae, genus Flavivirus, cause significant illnesses in humans. These diseases include dengue, yellow fever, West Nile fever, Japanese encephalitis, St. Louis encephalitis and Murray Valley encephalitis. The viruses cause syndromes that can be generally classified as one of three types: haemorrhagic fever, fever with rash and arthralgia, a...

The Nyamiviridae is a family of viruses with unsegmented, negative-sense RNA genomes of 11.3-12.2 kb that produce enveloped, spherical virions. Viruses of the genus Nyavirus are tick-borne and some also infect birds. Other nyamiviruses infecting parasitoid wasps and plant parasitic nematodes have been classified into the genera Peropuvirus and Socyvirus, respectively. This is a summary of the c...

Eastern equine encephalomyelitis (EEE), western equine encephalomyelitis (WEE), and Venezuelan equine encephalomyelitis (VEE) viruses are mosquito-borne pathogens that can cause nonspecific illnesses and encephalitis in equids (horses, mules, burros, donkeys and zebras) and humans in the Americas. Some of these viruses also affect birds and occasionally other mammals. No specific treatment is a...

In the early 1990’s, occasional incidents of transmission of enveloped viruses (hepatitis B (HBV) and C viruses (HCV)) and other blood-borne viruses, including hepatitis A virus (HAV) occurred with plasma-derived medicinal products. As a result, the effectiveness of processes for inactivation/ removal of enveloped viruses was increased. In addition, the Committee on Proprietary Medicinal Produc...