West Nile virus Essays

West Nile Virus is a member of the genus Flavivirus in the family Flaviviridae, made up of viruses that are routinely spread through arthopod vectors. More specifically, it is associated with the Japanese Encephelitis antigenic complex, which is included in the genus Flavivirus, and home to eight pathogen-causing virus species. It is a single-stranded, positive RNA virus surrounded by an enveloped capsid that is around 50nm in diameter. It has the ability to infect birds, mosquitoes, humans, horses

West Nile Virus (WNV), a mosquito-borne pathogen is a relatively new disease that has drawn a good deal of attention since it first arrived in New York City in 1999. Since the potentially fatal neurological disease was first found in New York, the disease has rapidly spread to all 48 of the continental United States and Canada. Outbreaks of WNV have even been reported in parts of South America, although the numbers of reported outbreaks are far fewer than what the United States has experienced

was the first time that West Nile Virus was identified. The disease then quickly spread to the United States, first reaching New York in 1999. Since then, West Nile Virus has spread throughout the world, including most of North America. Today, many cases are reported primarily in the tropics of North America, South America and Asia. (Con. Spr., 1). Due to the fact that mosquitoes carry the most disease in the early fall, the largest amount of people to contract West Nile Virus per year usually occurs

Microbe: Are We Ready for the Next Plague? By: Alan P. Zelicoff and Michael Bellomo Microbe, by Alan P. Zelicoff and Michael Bellomo, describes the way our public health systems react to outbreaks of disease. It shows many different real life situations, including the 2003 SARS outbreak in China, and describes the way that national health organizations responded to the threats. Using the situations that occurred in the past, Microbe presents two different hypothetical outbreaks - a natural

Human monkeypox is a viral zoonotic disease caused by the monkeypox virus (MPXV), a member of the genus Orthopoxvirus (family Poxviridae, subfamily Chordopoxvirinae), that occurs mostly in the rain forests of central and western Africa. People living in or near the forested areas may have indirect or low-level exposure, possibly leading to subclinical infection. However, the disease recently emerged in the United States in imported wild rodents from Africa. Monkeypox has a clinical presentation very

Remedies to treat shingles/herpes zoster – Herpes and shingles domestic measures Herpes zoster and herpes virus, this infection can occur on any part of the body, usually on the abdomen looks on. Smallpox may occur. Blisters if not treated properly can be quite painful. Some domestic measures can be used to fix the shingles. Shingles/herpes domestic measures (Home remedies to treat shingles) Take anti-inflammatory medicine for herpes zoster (Take anti-inflammatory drug) Well Acetaminophen relief

Bluetongue is an infectious, non-contagious viral disease of ruminants and camelids transmit¬ted by Culicoides biting midges. It is caused by the bluetongue virus (BTV) and is placed in the epizooties list of diseases international. The manifestations of bluetongue range from an in apparent to a fatal outcome depending on the serotype and strain of the virus and the species, breed and age of the infected animal; older ani¬mals are generally more susceptible. Clinical signs are usually detected in fine-wool

Chicken Pox Chicken pox is also known as varicella and is caused by varicella zoster virus. According to Arthur Schoenstadt, in the 1500s chicken pox was first discovered by Giovanni Filippo in Italy. Then in the 1600s an English physician, that went by the name of Richard Morton gave the name chicken pox to what he thought was a bad case of the virus known as smallpox. During the 1700s it is believed that William Heberden was the very first English physician to prove that chicken pox and smallpox

Gene transfer is to transfer a gene from one DNA molecule to another DNA molecule. Gene transfer represents a relatively new possibility for the treatment of rare genetic disorders and common multifactorial diseases by changing the expression of a person's genes. In 1928, Griffith reported that a nonpathogenic pneumoccocus strain could become pathogenic when it was mixed with cells of heat-killed pathogenic pneumoccocus, which suggested that the pathogenic genetic material could be transformed from

can last up to three days whereas severe colds can last up to two weeks. Colds are caused by viruses. More than 200 different viruses can cause a cold. There are two groups of viruses, rhinoviruses and coronaviruses. These are the two very common virus groups that cause colds. The different viruses cause different colds, that’s why a person can get several colds, one after the other. Common colds can have more complications if the cold persists. This complications are mainly: • Acute bacterial

The tobacco mosaic virus is a single-stranded RNA virus that belongs to the genus tobamovirus, the genus that specifically affects the family Solanaceae and belongs to the family Virgaviridae. The tobacco mosaic virus was the first virus to be discovered(1). In 1982, Dmitri Ivanovsky suggested that there was a non-bacterial infectious agent that was still present in the infected sap after filtering(2,3). In 1898, Beijerinck repeated the Ivanovsky experiments and also found out that the infectious

In the novel, The Hot Zone, many new superstitions become significant due to the fear of epidemics. This connects to the many rituals that were performed and charms that were held. During the outbreak for Ebola and Marburg, people began to fear the virus. They feared they would get infected as everyone else. This fear lead to rituals being performed and lucky charms being held. In the novel, each person who worked in the biohazard lab always “performed all kinds of small rituals before they entered

Virus one of the hotly debated topic in today’s society has been blamed for many illnesses and complication. According to Britannica encyclopedia a “virus, is an infectious agent of small size and simple composition that can multiply only in living cells of animals, plants, or bacteria”. To explain the theory of whether viruses is alive of dead let look at the following. Living things must be able to reproduce, grow and develop and some these principles exhibit by viruses when they enter the host

6. How does biowarfare affect the victims? Biological weapons are designed to spread disease and plague, and the use of viral biological agents as weapons caused much infection and death. Each specific virus has its specific side effects, but one common disease used as a biological weapon is anthrax, which also has specific symptoms. When anthrax makes contact with skin, spores enter the body and produce toxins, which later causes sores, fever, fatigue, headache, and scarring. When anthrax is inhaled

A virus is a type of microbe that consists of two parts: a small genome of either single-stranded or double-stranded DNA or RNA, and a protein coat called a capsid which protects the genome. It is debatable whether or not viruses are living organisms because of their structures and functions; however, according to the characteristics of what makes an organism truly living, including nutrition, respiration, movement, excretion, growth, reproduction, and homeostasis, viruses are not actually alive

There are many plants that are poisonous and or toxic to livestock. The Poison Hemlock affects cattle, horses, sheep and goats. The poison hemlock has white flowers that grow on it. Hemlock seeds also pose a threat to livestock. This weed can be found in waste areas road sides and dry ditches ("Common Weeds Poisonous to Grazing Livestock"). Symptoms can occur within an hour after ingestion some symptoms can be nervousness, trembling, pain, dilated pupils, weekend and or slow heartbeat, drowsiness

Influenza virus is a substantial threat for human health and is a big cause of ~500,000 death rates[1] and is responsible for ~50 million death worldwide over last 100 years.[2]-[4] Influenza viruses is generally classified in to three genera (A, B,C). Influenza A and B viruses have rapid evolution and continuous accumulation of amino acid changes in the antibody-binding sites of the surface protein, results in the change in antigenicity. Despite of existing vaccination programs, research in

Steven Ho Biology Lab 132 Marian Wahl 4/14/15 Caffeinated Planarians vs. Spring Water Planarians Introduction: Planarians are free-living, freshwater flatworms that are found in clean, unpolluted water. Planarians live in small, shallow, slow-moving streams under stones or leaves. Planarians cannot live in chlorinated water because it is toxic to them and can kill these animals. Planarians are also able to regenerate themselves if their bodies happens to completely tear apart. The animal adheres

A virus is a microscopic organism that can replicate only inside the cells of a host organism. Viruses are responsible for many of the simple and deadly diseases around the world. Biologists have been classifying organisms for a long time now however, there has been much debate over whether or not viruses should be classified as living or non-living. My viewpoint regarding viruses is that it should not be considered living. For something to be considered living it must meet the seven characteristics

genome into the host cell in order to replicate) are used to deliver working copies of the defective genes. After the genes have been delivered, the stem cells are returned to the patient. Because the cells are cared for outside the patient's body, the virus will infect and transfer the gene to only the desired target cells. Severe Combined Immune Deficiency (SCID) was one of the first genetic disorders to be treated successfully with gene therapy, this proved that the approach could in fact work. However