Kyasanur forest disease virus breaking the endemic barrier: An investigation into ecological effects on disease emergence and future outlook

Ajesh, K.; Nagaraja, B. K.; Sreejith, K.

doi:10.1111/zph.12349

Cited by 33 publications

(34 citation statements)

References 39 publications

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“…The introduction of this novel virus into human populations in 1957 and the resulting occurrence of seasonal outbreaks demonstrate a chief role of wildlife in the emergence of this zoonotic pathogen (Singh and Gajadhar, 2014 ). Transmission by animal migration or bats might have been the cause of disease emergence in the new KFDV zones-Sattari taluk of Goa, Sindhudurg district of Maharashtra State, Kerala and Tamil Nadu (Ajesh et al, 2017 ).…”

Section: Potential Ecological Drivers Of Kfd Prevalencementioning

confidence: 99%

Epidemiology, Pathogenesis, and Control of a Tick-Borne Disease- Kyasanur Forest Disease: Current Status and Future Directions

Shah

Jabbar

Ahmed

et al. 2018

Front. Cell. Infect. Microbiol.

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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.

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Section: Potential Ecological Drivers Of Kfd Prevalencementioning

confidence: 99%

Epidemiology, Pathogenesis, and Control of a Tick-Borne Disease- Kyasanur Forest Disease: Current Status and Future Directions

Shah

Jabbar

Ahmed

et al. 2018

Front. Cell. Infect. Microbiol.

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“…Annual numbers of human cases of KFD range from 400 to 500 in endemic regions, with a case fatality rate of 3–5% (up to 10% during outbreaks); however, it is believed that these numbers are largely underestimated 2 . Diseases similar to KFD have been reported in Saudi Arabia and China, and recent outbreaks of KFD also have been documented in other parts of India, indicating that the infection is expanding to new areas 3 , 4 .…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 85%

Kyasanur Forest disease virus infection activates human vascular endothelial cells and monocyte-derived dendritic cells

Širmarová

Salát

Palus

et al. 2018

Emerging Microbes & Infections

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Kyasanur Forest disease virus (KFDV) is a highly pathogenic tick-borne flavivirus enzootic to India. In humans, KFDV causes a severe febrile disease. In some infected individuals, hemorrhagic manifestations, such as bleeding from the nose and gums and gastrointestinal bleeding with hematemesis and/or blood in the stool, have been reported. However, the mechanisms underlying these hemorrhagic complications remain unknown, and there is no information about the specific target cells for KFDV. We investigated the interaction of KFDV with vascular endothelial cells (ECs) and monocyte-derived dendritic cells (moDCs), which are key targets for several other hemorrhagic viruses. Here, we report that ECs are permissive to KFDV infection, which leads to their activation, as demonstrated by the upregulation of E-selectin, intercellular adhesion molecule 1, and vascular cell adhesion molecule 1 at the mRNA and protein levels. Increased expression of these adhesive molecules correlated with increased leukocyte adhesion. Infected ECs upregulated the expression of interleukin (IL)-6 but not IL-8. Additionally, moDCs were permissive to KFDV infection, leading to increased release of IL-6 and tumor necrosis factor-α. Supernatants from KFDV-infected moDCs caused EC activation, as measured by leukocyte adhesion. The results indicate that ECs and moDCs can be targets for KFDV and that both direct and indirect mechanisms can contribute to EC activation.

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“…primary production. When such resources are lost due to deforestation (Jha et al, 2000), the subsequent displacement of animals may lead to foraging in novel, anthropogenic ecotones located across the transition from forest to human habitation or agriculture, potentially exposing humans to their ticks and arboviruses (Ajesh et al, 2017; Naren babu et al, 2019; Sadanandane et al, 2018). This may be reflected in the shifting of the nidus of KFD from Sagar and Soraba Taluks in Shimoga district in Karnataka northwards into Goa and Maharashtra and southwards into Thirthahalli Taluk in Karnataka, Wayanad district in Kerala, and Nilgiri in Tamil Nadu, all of which comprise the Bandipur Forest range (Walsh et al, 2019).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

A preliminary ecological profile of Kyasanur Forest disease virus hosts among the mammalian wildlife of the Western Ghats, India

Walsh

Mor

Maity

et al. 2020

Preprint

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AbstractKyasanur Forest disease (KFD) is one of India’s severe arboviruses capable of causing prolonged debilitating disease. It has been expanding beyond its historical endemic locus at an alarming rate over the last two decades. The natural nidus of this zoonosis is located in the monsoon rainforest of the Western Ghats, India, which is one of the world’s most important biodiversity hotspots. Definitive reservoir hosts for KFD virus (KFDV) have yet to be delineated, and thus much of the infection ecology of this virus, and its consequent transmission dynamics, remains uncertain. Given its unique biogeographical context, identifying ecological parameters of KFDV relevant to the virus’ epidemiology has been complex and challenging. The challenge has been exacerbated by diminished research efforts in wildlife surveillance over the last two decades, coinciding with the expansion of the range of KFD across the region. The current investigation sought to define a preliminary ecological profile of KFDV hosts based on their life history and feeding traits to aid in re-establishing targeted wildlife surveillance and to discern those ecological traits of wildlife hosts that may improve our understanding of KFD epidemiology. The importance of fast-living among KFDV hosts was of special interest with respect to the latter aim. We compared mammalian traits between host and non-host species using general additive models and phylogenetic generalised linear models. This study found that both body mass and forest forage were strongly associated with mammalian host infection status, but that reproductive life history traits were not. These findings will help in structuring ecologically based wildlife surveillance and field investigations, while also helping to parameterise novel epidemiological models of zoonotic infection risk that incorporate species functional traits in a region where biogeography, landscape ecology, and community ecology manifest extraordinary complexity, particularly under growing anthropogenic pressure.

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Kyasanur forest disease virus breaking the endemic barrier: An investigation into ecological effects on disease emergence and future outlook

Cited by 33 publications

References 39 publications

Epidemiology, Pathogenesis, and Control of a Tick-Borne Disease- Kyasanur Forest Disease: Current Status and Future Directions

Epidemiology, Pathogenesis, and Control of a Tick-Borne Disease- Kyasanur Forest Disease: Current Status and Future Directions

Kyasanur Forest disease virus infection activates human vascular endothelial cells and monocyte-derived dendritic cells

A preliminary ecological profile of Kyasanur Forest disease virus hosts among the mammalian wildlife of the Western Ghats, India

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