Blog posts
Is artificial intelligence key to dengue prevention?
This blog is closed to new posts due to inactivity. The post remains here as part of the network’s ...
Survey: What do you want from a diagnostic kit?
This blog is closed to new posts due to inactivity. The post remains here as part of the network’s archive ...
From Classroom to Research: Primary school students as Citizen Scientists in Health research in Sudan
by Nada G. AbdelrahmanEstimating the risk of arbovirus transmission in Southern Europe using vector competence data
by Mariconti et al.Based on vector competence data and vector distribution, the auhtors generate a prediction risk map for CHIKV stressing the fear of CHIKV and to a lesser extent, of other arboviruses for Europe, calling us for new public health strategies.
Cross-Protection of Dengue Virus Infection against Congenital Zika Syndrome, Northeastern Brazil
by Pedroso et al.The results reported in this study suggest that multitypic dengue virus infection may protect from, rather than enhance, development of congenital Zika syndrome.
This study shows a broad picture of possible interactions between mosquito cellular miRNAs and the viral RNA of different genotypes/lineages of arboviruses, providing a list of mosquito cellular miRNAs candidates for experimental validations in future studies.
Past and future spread of the arbovirus vectors Aedes aegypti and Aedes albopictus
by Kraemer et al.This study offers an opportunity to strategically target surveillance and control programmes and thereby augment efforts to reduce arbovirus burden in human populations globally.
Dengue fever is a global concern - we urge the United Nations to designate a World Dengue Day at its General Assembly in September 2019
Oral Antibiotic Treatment of Mice Exacerbates the Disease Severity of Multiple Flavivirus Infections
by Thackray LB et al.Treatment with antibiotics depletes the gut microbiota in mice, making them more susceptible to infection by dengue, zika and west nile virus.
Re-evaluation of routine dengue virus serology in travelers in the era of Zika virus emergence
by van Meer et al.Researchers have demonstrated that the recent ZIKV outbreak in Latin America substantially affects the DENV serology in routine diagnostic laboratories.
Neotropical bats that co-habit with humans function as dead-end hosts for dengue virus
by Vicente-Santos et al.Results from this study indicate that bats do not sustain sufficient virus amplification in order to function as reservoirs and exclude them as players in the dengue virus transmission cycle.
Advances in using Internet searches to track dengue
by Shihao Yang, Samuel C. Kou , Fred Lu, John S. Brownstein, Nicholas Brooke, Mauricio SantillanaDengue is a mosquito-borne disease that threatens over half of the world’s population. Despite being endemic to more than 100 countries, government-led efforts and tools for timely identification and tracking of new infections are still lacking in many affected areas. Multiple methodologies that leverage the use of Internet-based data sources have been proposed as a way to complement dengue surveillance efforts. Among these, dengue-related Google search trends have been shown to correlate with dengue activity. We extend a methodological framework, initially proposed and validated for flu surveillance, to produce near real-time estimates of dengue cases in five countries/states: Mexico, Brazil, Thailand, Singapore and Taiwan. Our result shows that our modeling framework can be used to improve the tracking of dengue activity in multiple locations around the world.
15th International Dengue Course and ZIKAlliance WP1 meeting to be held in Cuba next August
by ZIKAllianceLessons learned in health communication and risk management of Chikungunya virus and other vector-born diseases
by Jair Vega et al.Review of articles on communication strategies for vector-borne diseases
Outwitting dengue threat and epidemics resurgence in Asia-Pacific countries: strengthening integrated dengue surveillance, monitoring and response systems
by Tambo E et al.Strengthening integrated dengue surveillance, monitoring and response systems
Evaluation of NS1 Antigen Detection for Early Diagnosis of Dengue in a Tertiary Hospital in Southern India
by Anand AM et al.Evaluation of NS1 antigen assay as an alternative to RT-PCR for the early diagnosis of dengue
The Use of a Dengue Rapid Diagnostic Test During Suspected Dengue Outbreaks in Resource Limited Regions
by Hunsperger EA et al.Evaluation of rapid diagnostic test for dengue virus
Projected Impact of Dengue Vaccination in Yucatán, Mexico
by Hladish et al.Analysis of potential dengue vaccine impact in Yucatán Mexico.
The global economic burden of dengue: a systematic analysis
by Shepard D.S. et alAn estimate of the global economic burden of dengue by country and super-region
The global burden of dengue: an analysis from the Global Burden of Disease Study 2013
by Dr Jeffrey D Stanaway, Prof Donald S Shepard et alThis paper looks at the true cost of dengue fever
Symptomatic Dengue in Children in 10 Asian and Latin American Countries
by Maïna L’Azou, M.Sc. et al.Secondary analysis of clinical trial data reveals dengue burden
Vector control, surveillance, drugs, diagnostics and vaccines all hold exciting potential but none can solve the problem alone. We need an integrated approach.
Suppression of the Arboviruses Dengue and Chikungunya Using a Dual-Acting Group-I Intron Coupled with Conditional Expression of the Bax C-Terminal Domain
by James R. Carter, Samantha Taylor, Tresa S. Fraser, Cheryl A. Kucharski, James L. Dawson, Malcolm J.Research points to a promising single antiviral for the transgenic suppression of multiple arboviruses
Could a protein be key to new dengue drug discoveries?
by Gary FinneganScientists belive a protein may be key to new dengue drug discoveries?
With Zika infection rates now seeming to be on the increase, the Oxford Science Blog talked to Professor Lang about why it is so important to develop capacity for doing research in places where research doesn't normally happen.
Aedes aegypti on Madeira Island (Portugal): genetic variation of a recently introduced dengue vector
by Dengue LabAbstract The increasing population of Aedes aegypti mosquitoes on Madeira Island (Portugal) resulted in the first autochthonous dengue outbreak, which occurred in October 2012. Our study establishes the first genetic evaluation based on the mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) genes [cytochrome oxidase subunit I (COI) and NADH dehydrogenase subunit 4 (ND4)] and knockdown resistance ( kdr ) mutations exploring the colonisation history and the genetic diversity of this insular vector population. We included mosquito populations from Brazil and Venezuela in the analysis as putative geographic sources. The Ae. aegypti population from Madeira showed extremely low mtDNA genetic variability, with a single haplotype for COI and ND4. We also detected the presence of two important kdr mutations and the quasi-fixation of one of these mutations (F1534C). These results are consistent with a unique recent founder event that occurred on the island of Ae. aegypti mosquitoes that carry kdr mutations associated with insecticide resistance. Finally, we also report the presence of the F1534C kdr mutation in the Brazil and Venezuela populations. To our knowledge, this is the first time this mutation has been found in South American Ae. aegypti mosquitoes. Given the present risk of Ae. aegypti re-invading continental Europe from Madeira and the recent dengue outbreaks on the island, this information is important to plan surveillance and control measures.
Re-Emergence of Malaria and Dengue in Europe
by Degue LabMortality Trend by Dengue in Mexico 1980 to 2009
by Dengue LabAbstract Objective: To describe the mortality of dengue in Mexico during 1980 to 2009. Method: Dengue mortality data for Mexico were obtained from Instituto Nacional de Estadistica, Geografía e Informática. We used standardized and non-standardized dengue mortality rates per 1,000,000 people and determined the mortality trend. The groups were based on International Classification of Diseases coding criteria (ICD-9 E061 and ICD-10 A91X). The results were stratified by age groups and the frequencies of dengue deaths were compared using relative risk (RR) with its 95% confidence interval. Results: During 1980 to 2009 in Mexico, 549 deaths due to dengue were reported. We found an important variation in the mortality rates during the years studied. We were able to identify three periods: 1980 to 1992, 1994 to 2000, and 2001 to 2009. The mortality rates found are from 0.88/1,000,000 through 0.00/1,000,000. The average mortality rates by decade: 1980 to 1989: 0.53/1,000,000; 1990 to 1999: 0.06/1,000,000; 2000 to 2009: 0.12/1,000,000. In the analysis of mortality by community size during 2000 to 2009, we observed in the small communities with less than 2499 people, the risk is 1.25 times higher than in those with more than 20,000 people. Conclusions: We found, in general, a sustained decline in the number of deaths by dengue over the last 30 years in Mexico. However, a slow increase was observed since 1994, which may be related to the circulation of DENV2 and DENV3, among other factors. We need to strengthen prevention programs in smaller communities (<2499) where we found a higher risk of mortality due to dengue.
Field Evaluation and Impact on Clinical Management of a Rapid Diagnostic Kit That Detects Dengue NS1, IgM and IgG
by Anne-Claire Andries, Veasna Duong, Chantha Ngan, Sivuth Ong, Rekol Huy, Kim Kim Sroin, Vantha Te, Bunthin Y, Patrich Lorn Try, Philippe BuchyComing soon! A paper series on clinical trial design for tropical diseases. Read more here and get involved!