Re-emergence of epidemic Venezuelan equine encephalomyelitis in South America

Weaver, Scott C.; Salas, Rosalba; Rico-Hesse, Rebeca; Ludwig, George V.; Oberste, Max; Bóshell, Jorge; Tesh, Robert B.

doi:10.1016/s0140-6736(96)02275-1

Cited by 262 publications

(233 citation statements)

References 14 publications

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“…6 Subsequent outbreaks have been reported during the 1990s in Mexico 7 and Peru, but the largest epidemic/epizootic occurred between April and December 1995, affecting hundreds of thousands of equines and humans in northern Venezuela and Colombia. 9,10 The 1995 outbreak had many similarities to the one that occurred from 1962-1964: first, cases occurred in the same regions of Venezuela and Colombia, and the epicenter was in the Guajira peninsula; second, the VEE virus subtype IC strains isolated in both outbreaks are nearly identical genetically. 9 Venezuelan equine encephalitis viruses are mosquitoborne RNA viruses belonging to family Togaviridae, genus Alphavirus, which includes seven antigenic complexes.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 97%

“…9,10 The 1995 outbreak had many similarities to the one that occurred from 1962-1964: first, cases occurred in the same regions of Venezuela and Colombia, and the epicenter was in the Guajira peninsula; second, the VEE virus subtype IC strains isolated in both outbreaks are nearly identical genetically. 9 Venezuelan equine encephalitis viruses are mosquitoborne RNA viruses belonging to family Togaviridae, genus Alphavirus, which includes seven antigenic complexes. 11 The VEE antigenic complex includes six antigenic subtypes and additional antigenic varieties, but only subtypes IAB and IC are pathogenic for horses and produce high titered viremia sufficient for efficient epizootic amplification.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 97%

See 1 more Smart Citation

Ecological studies of enzootic Venezuelan equine encephalitis in north-central Venezuela, 1997-1998.

Salas¹,

García

Liria

et al. 2001

The American Journal of Tropical Medicine and Hygiene

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Abstract. From 1997From -1998, we investigated the possible continuous circulation of epizootic Venezuelan equine encephalitis (VEE) virus suggested by a 1983 subtype IC interepizootic mosquito isolate made in Panaquire, Miranda State, Venezuela. The study area was originally covered by lowland tropical rainforest but has been converted into cacao plantations. Sentinel hamsters, small mammal trapping, mosquito collections, and human serosurveys were used to detect active or recent virus circulation. Six strains of subtype ID VEE virus were isolated from hamsters that displayed no apparent disease. Four other arboviruses belonging to group A (Togaviridae: Alphavirus), two Bunyamwera group (Bunyaviridae), and three Gamboa group (Bunyaviridae) arboviruses were also isolated from hamsters, as well as 8 unidentified viruses. Venezuelan equine encephalitis-specific antibodies were detected in 5 small mammal species: Proechimys guairae, Marmosa spp., and Didelphis marsupialis. Mosquito collections comprised of 38 different species, including 8 members of the subgenus Culex (Melanoconion), did not yield any virus isolates. Sera from 195 humans, either workers in the cacao plantation or nearby residents, were all negative for VEE virus antibodies. Sequences of 1,677 nucleotides from the P62 gene of 2 virus isolates indicated that they represent a subtype ID lineage that is distinct from all others characterized previously, and are unrelated to epizootic VEE emergence.

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Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 97%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 97%

Ecological studies of enzootic Venezuelan equine encephalitis in north-central Venezuela, 1997-1998.

Salas¹,

García

Liria

et al. 2001

The American Journal of Tropical Medicine and Hygiene

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“…Furthermore, Aedes albopictus , which is present in both tropical and temperate regions, is also an efficient laboratory vector [109]. Thus, human viremia levels after infection with both endemic [75] and epizootic VEEV strains [22,110], combined with urban vector susceptibility, could potentially lead to a stable, endemic, urban VEEV cycle that could have devastating public health implications throughout Latin America.…”

Section: Future Perspectivementioning

confidence: 99%

Addressing theFertility needs of HIV-Seropositive Males

et al. 2011

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Venezuelan equine encephalitis (VEE) is an emerging infectious disease in Latin America. Outbreaks have been recorded for decades in countries with enzootic circulation, and the recent implementation of surveillance systems has allowed the detection of additional human cases in countries and areas with previously unknown VEE activity. Clinically, VEE is indistinguishable from dengue and other arboviral diseases and confirmatory diagnosis requires the use of specialized laboratory tests that are difficult to afford in resource-limited regions. Thus, the disease burden of endemic VEE in developing countries remains largely unknown, but recent surveillance suggests that it may represent up to 10% of the dengue burden in neotropical cities, or tens-of-thousands of cases per year throughout Latin America. The potential emergence of epizootic viruses from enzootic progenitors further highlights the need to strengthen surveillance activities, identify mosquito vectors and reservoirs and develop effective strategies to control the disease. In this article, we provide an overview of the current status of endemic VEE that results from spillover of the enzootic cycles, and we discuss public health measures for disease control as well as future avenues for VEE research.

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“…VEEV exhibits a spherical morphology and consists of a capped, positive-sense single-stranded polyadenylated genome (resembles an mRNA molecule of about 12 kb) surrounded by capsid protein and enclosed in a host cell-derived lipid envelope containing the viral GP E1 and E2 [36]. Recent large outbreaks involving tens of thousands of individuals and animals, especially horses, have been reported [37]. The current humanuse vaccine against VEEV, TC-83, was produced by serial passage of the virulent Trinidad donkey (TRD) strain of VEEV in cultured cells [10].…”

Section: Vaccinia Virus-vectored Venezuelan Equine Encephalitis Vaccinesmentioning

confidence: 99%