The emerging Middle East respiratory syndrome coronavirus (MERS-CoV

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Arenaviruses are feared as agents that cause viral hemorrhagic fevers. We report the identification, isolation, and genetic characterization of 2 novel arenaviruses from Namaqua rock mice in Namibia. These findings extend knowledge of the distribution and diversity of arenaviruses in Africa.

A surprisingly high diversity of arenaviruses was detected in this study and further characterisation efforts are ongoing. The identification of arenaviruses by our group and others in Southern Africa suggests that they are more widely distributed than previously thought. The distribution and pathogenicity (or not) for humans is yet to be defined. The outbreak of Lujo virus in 2008 is a reminder that there may be horrible surprises out there.

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and duikers, in areas where EBOV is present was assessed as low. For domestic animals in these areas, such as pigs and dogs, the likelihood was assessed as very low. The likelihood of EBOV introduction into non-infected countries through trade, handling and consumption of wild meat was also assessed as very low. Given limited availability of surveillance or field study data, the level of uncertainty in the assessment remains high. Conclusion: Investigations of historic human outbreaks suggest that EBOV is initially introduced into human populations through contact with infected wild mammals or their meat. However, in line with the assessed low likelihood, this is considered a rare event. The public health impact of spillover, when occurring, is however devastating due to the huge consequences that human outbreaks entail. The risk assessment helped consolidating current knowledge on EBOV in animals and highlighted outstanding knowledge gaps, including EBOV survival in the environment, susceptibility of animal species in field settings, and information on wild meat trade movements.