BACKGROUND: Zoonotic transmission events play a major role in the emergence of novel diseases. While such events are virtually impossible to predict, wildlife screening for potential emerging pathogens can be a first step. Driven by recent disease epidemics like severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS), Middle East respiratory syndrome (MERS), and Ebola, bats have gained special interest as reservoirs of emerging viruses. METHODS: As part of a bigger study investigating pathogens in African bats we screened animals for the presence of known and unknown viruses. RESULTS: We isolated and characterised a novel reovirus from blood of free-tailed bats (Chaereophon aloysiisabaudiae) captured in 2006 in Côte d'Ivoire. The virus showed closest relationship with two human pathogenic viruses, Colorado tick fever virus and Eyach virus, and was able to infect various human cell lines in vitro. CONCLUSION: The study shows the presence of a coltivirus-related virus in bats from Sub-Sahara Africa. Serological studies could help to assess its impact on humans or wildlife health. REFERENCE: Weiss S, et al. A novel Coltivirus-related virus isolated from free-tailed bats from Côte d'Ivoire is able to infect human cells in vitro. Virol J. 2017 Sep 18;14(1):181. ----------------------------------------------------------- Sigue este Blog en Facebook y Twitter Ayúdanos a traducir las fichas de seguridad de microorganismos. […]

From 1994 to 2009, federal oversight of human pathogens and toxins was limited to facilities importing human pathogens and toxins into Canada under the Human Pathogens Importation Regulations (HPIR). This narrow focus of authority restricted the Government of Canada’s ability to regulate and monitor a full range of activities, including those involving human pathogens and toxins acquired from domestic sources. In 2009, the Human Pathogens and Toxins Act (the Act) received Royal Assent to establish a national safety and security regime and expand oversight through a national, standardized process to verify safe and secure use of human pathogens and toxins in Canada. The Act and the Human Pathogens and Toxins Regulations (the Regulations), in full force since December 1, 2015, provides legislative and statutory requirements for the comprehensive oversight of the control of human pathogens and toxins in Canada. Expanded regulation and monitoring program activities aim to reduce the risks posed by human pathogens and toxins and strengthen biosafety management systems that serve to protect the health of Canadians. REFERENCE: Labrie, C, and S Lecordier. “Regulatory Oversight of Human Pathogens and Toxins in Canada.” Canada Communicable Disease Report 41.Suppl 6 (2015): 14–18. Print. ----------------------------------------------------------- Sigue este Blog en Facebook y Twitter Ayúdanos a traducir las fichas de seguridad de microorganismos. […]

In South Asia, Haemaphysalis spinigera tick transmits Kyasanur Forest Disease Virus (KFDV), a flavivirus that causes severe hemorrhagic fever with neurological manifestations such as mental disturbances, severe headache, tremors, and vision deficits in infected human beings with a fatality rate of 3-10%. The disease was first reported in March 1957 from Kyasanur forest of Karnataka (India) from sick and dying monkeys. Since then, between 400 and 500 humans cases per year have been recorded; monkeys and small mammals are common hosts of this virus. KFDV can cause epizootics with high fatality in primates and is a level-4 virus according to the international biosafety rules. The density of tick vectors in a given year correlates with the incidence of human disease. The virus is a positive strand RNA virus and its genome was discovered to code for one polyprotein that is cleaved post-translationally into 3 structural proteins (Capsid protein, Envelope Glycoprotein M and Envelope Glycoprotein E) and 7 non-structural proteins (NS1, NS2A, NS2B, NS3, NS4A, NS4B, and NS5). KFDV has a high degree of sequence homology with most members of the TBEV serocomplex. Alkhurma virus is a KFDV variant sharing a sequence similarity of 97%. KFDV is classified as a NIAID Category C priority pathogen due to its extreme pathogenicity and lack of US FDA approved vaccines and therapeutics; also, the infectious dose is currently unknown for KFD. In India, formalin-inactivated KFDV vaccine produced in chick embryo fibroblast is being used. Nevertheless, further efforts are required to enhance its long-term efficacy. KFDV remains an understudied virus and there remains a lack of insight into its pathogenesis; moreover, specific treatment to the disease is not available to date. Environmental and climatic factors involved in disseminating Kyasanur Forest Disease are required to be fully explored. There should be a mapping of endemic areas and cross-border veterinary surveillance needs to be developed in high-risk regions. The involvement of both animal and health sector is pivotal for circumscribing the spread of this disease to new areas. REFERENCE: Shah, Syed Z. et al. “Epidemiology, Pathogenesis, and Control of a Tick-Borne Disease- Kyasanur Forest Disease: Current Status and Future Directions.” Frontiers in Cellular and Infection Microbiology 8 (2018): 149. PMC. Web. 11 June 2018. ----------------------------------------------------------- Sigue este Blog en Facebook y Twitter Ayúdanos a traducir las fichas de seguridad de microorganismos. […]

Remarkably little is known definitively about the modes of influenza transmission. Thus, important health policy and infection control issues remain unresolved. These shortcomings have been exposed in national and international pandemic preparedness activities over recent years. Indeed, WHO, CDC, ECDC and the U.S. Institute of Medicine have prioritised understanding the modes of influenza transmission as a critical need for pandemic planning. Studying influenza transmission is difficult; seasonality, unpredictable attack rates, role of environmental parameters such as temperature and humidity, numbers of participants required and confounding variables all present considerable obstacles to the execution of definitive studies. A range of investigations performed to date have failed to provide definitive answers and key questions remain. Reasons for this include the fact that many studies have not sought to investigate routes of transmission as a primary objective (instead, they have evaluated specific interventions) and that fieldwork in natural settings, specifically assessing the dynamics and determinants of transmission between humans, has been limited. The available evidence suggests that all routes of transmission (droplet, aerosol and contact) have a role to play; their relative significance will depend on the set of circumstances acting at a given time. Dictating the process are factors related to the virus itself, the host and the environment. REFERENCES:Killingley, Ben, and Jonathan Nguyen‐Van‐Tam. “Routes of Influenza Transmission.” Influenza and Other Respiratory Viruses 7.Suppl Suppl 2 (2013): 42–51. PMC. Web. 18 May 2018. ----------------------------------------------------------- Sigue este Blog en Facebook y Twitter Ayúdanos a traducir las fichas de seguridad de microorganismos. […]

Background. Prevention of infection with airborne pathogens and exposure to airborne particulates and aerosols (environmental pollutants and allergens) can be facilitated through use of disposable face masks. The effectiveness of such masks for excluding pathogens and pollutants is dependent on the intrinsic ability of the masks to resist penetration by airborne contaminants. This study evaluated the relative contributions of a mask, valve, and Micro Ventilator on aerosol filtration efficiency of a new N95 respiratory face mask.Methods. The test mask was challenged, using standardized methods, with influenza A and rhinovirus type 14, bacteriophage ΦΧ174, Staphylococcus aureus (S. aureus), and model pollutants. The statistical significance of results obtained for different challenge microbial agents and for different mask configurations (masks with operational or nonoperational ventilation fans and masks with sealed Smart Valves) was assessed.Results. The results demonstrate >99.7% efficiency of each test mask configuration for exclusion of influenza A virus, rhinovirus 14, and S. aureus and >99.3% efficiency for paraffin oil and sodium chloride (surrogates for PM2.5). Statistically significant differences in effectiveness of the different mask configurations were not identified. The efficiencies of the masks for excluding smaller-size (i.e., rhinovirus and bacteriophage ΦΧ174) vs. larger-size microbial agents (influenza virus, S. aureus) were not significantly different.Conclusions. The masks, with or without features intended for enhancing comfort, provide protection against both small- and large-size pathogens. Importantly, the mask appears to be highly efficient for filtration of pathogens, including influenza and rhinoviruses, as well as the fine particulates (PM2.5) present in aerosols that represent a greater challenge for many types of dental and surgical masks. This renders this individual-use N95 respiratory mask an improvement over the former types of masks for protection against a variety of environmental contaminants including PM2.5 and pathogens such as influenza and rhinoviruses. REFERENCES: Zhou, S. Steve et al. “Assessment of a Respiratory Face Mask for Capturing Air Pollutants and Pathogens Including Human Influenza and Rhinoviruses.” Journal of Thoracic Disease 10.3 (2018): 2059–2069. PMC. Web. 18 May 2018. ----------------------------------------------------------- Sigue este Blog en Facebook y Twitter Ayúdanos a traducir las fichas de seguridad de microorganismos. […]