Introduction Australia hosts at least 75 species of arboviruses, several of which are associated with mild to life-threatening human disease. Among these are encephalitic flaviviruses, such as the Kunjin strain of WNV (KUNV), Japanese encephalitis virus (JEV), and Murray Valley…
Introduction West Nile virus (WNV) was first isolated in 1937 in the West Nile district of Uganda and was subsequently reported in other areas of Africa, the Middle East, Europe, South Asia, and Australia. For decades, infections with WNV were…
Introduction In 2014, a rare and mysterious disease began to be seen in newborns in Brazil. Babies afflicted with this disease had several distinctive features: severe microcephaly accompanied by neurological, developmental, and prominent skull abnormalities; decreased range of motion; and,…
Introduction Dengue fever (DF) and the more serious forms of DENV infection, dengue hemorrhagic fever (DHF) and dengue shock syndrome (DSS), are currently found throughout much of the world. DF causes extreme bone pain. DHF and DSS are life-threatening, primarily…
Introduction The flaviviruses are the largest group of the Flaviviridae family that infects humans. Hepatitis C virus is also a member of the Flaviviridae family, but is not a flavivirus. Some flaviviruses cause severe pathology in both immunocompromised and immunocompetent…