Zoonotic transmission of lethal henipaviruses (HNVs) from their natural fruit bat reservoirs to humans has only been reported in Australia and South/Southeast Asia. However, a recent study discovered numerous HNV clades in African bat samples. To determine the potential for HNV spillover events among humans in Africa, here we examine well-curated sets of bat (Eidolon helvum, n = 44) and human (...

Antigenic and genomic relationships among tissue culture-adapted turkey enteric coronavirus (TCV) isolates, three strains of avian infectious bronchitis virus (IBV), and mammalian coronaviruses were investigated. Immunoblotting and immunoprecipitation experiments using polyclonal antisera showed that the four major structural proteins of TCV cross-reacted with the four homologous proteins of bo...

Enteroviruses were specifically detected in crude clinical specimens or in cell cultures in which the viruses were amplified by dot hybridization by using poliovirus type 1-derived, subgenomic radiolabeled cRNA probes (riboprobes). The sensitivity of this test varied from 2.5 to 33%, when clinical specimens without cell culture were examined, and was about 85% in cell culture lysates. The speci...

This article describes a combination of methods--a solid-phase enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) combined with an ultramicroanalytical system (UMAS)--that can be used to measure tetanus antitoxin activity in human sera or plasma. The test, which is rapid and permits analysis of 78 samples of serum per reaction plate with a volume of 10 microL of diluted serum per sample, is proposed as ...

The genome of infectious hematopoietic necrosis virus (IHNV), a salmonid novirhabdovirus, has been engineered to modify the gene order and to evaluate the impact on a possible attenuation of the virus in vitro and in vivo By reverse genetics, eight recombinant IHNVs (rIHNVs), termed NxGy according to the respective positions of the nucleoprotein (N) and glycoprotein (G) genes along the genome, ...

BACKGROUND Dengue is not well documented in Africa. In Cameroon, data are scarce, but dengue infection has been confirmed in humans. We conducted a study to document risk factors associated with anti-dengue virus Immunoglobulin G seropositivity in humans in three major towns in Cameroon. METHODOLOGY/PRINCIPAL FINDINGS A cross sectional survey was conducted in Douala, Garoua and Yaounde, using...

The sequencing of the VP1 hypervariable region of the human enterovirus (HEV) genome has become the reference test for typing field isolates. This study describes a new strategy for typing HEV at the serotype level that uses a reverse transcription-PCR assay targeting the central part of the VP2 capsid protein. Two pairs of primers were used to amplify a fragment of 584 bp (with reference to th...

BACKGROUND Inactivated quadrivalent influenza vaccine (IIV4) containing two influenza A strains and one strain from each B lineage (Yamagata and Victoria) may offer broader protection against seasonal influenza than inactivated trivalent influenza vaccine (IIV3), containing a single B strain. This study examined the safety, immunogenicity, and lot consistency of an IIV4 candidate. METHODS Thi...

To the Editor: Rift Valley fever (RVF) is caused by a Phlebovirus (family Bunyaviridae) transmitted by a wide range of mosquitoes (1). This zoonotic disease is present in Africa, the Middle East, and Madagascar. Infections by RVF virus (RVFV) in ruminants cause massive abortions in livestock and high death rates in young animals, which result in major economic consequences. Humans are infected ...

Teschen disease (previously also known as Klobouk’s disease), actually called Teschovirus encephalomyelitis, is a virulent fatal viral disease of swine, characterized by severe neurological disorders of encephalomyelitis. It was initially discovered in the Teschen district of North-Eastern Moravia. During the 1940s and 1950s it caused serious losses to the pig production industry in Europe. The...