Research with variola virus after smallpox eradication: Development of a mouse model for variola virus infection. [PDF]
In this issue of PLOS Pathogens, Hutson and coworkers at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) in Atlanta, USA describe a study with infectious variola virus that was approved by the World Health Organization (WHO) Advisory Committee on ...
Bernard Moss, Geoffrey L Smith
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Re-Assembly and Analysis of an Ancient Variola Virus Genome [PDF]
We report a major improvement to the assembly of published short read sequencing data from an ancient variola virus (VARV) genome by the removal of contig-capping sequencing tags and manual searches for gap-spanning reads. The new assembly, together with
Chad Smithson, Jacob Imbery, Chris Upton
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The Origin of the Variola Virus [PDF]
The question of the origin of smallpox, one of the major menaces to humankind, is a constant concern for the scientific community. Smallpox is caused by the agent referred to as the variola virus (VARV), which belongs to the genus Orthopoxvirus.
Igor V. Babkin, Irina N. Babkina
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Prediction of steps in the evolution of variola virus host range. [PDF]
Variola virus, the agent of smallpox, has a severely restricted host range (humans) but a devastatingly high mortality rate. Although smallpox has been eradicated by a World Health Organization vaccination program, knowledge of the evolutionary processes
Chad Smithson+3 more
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Efficacy of heat against the vaccinia virus, variola virus and monkeypox virus. [PDF]
Kampf G.
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Gene duplication, gene loss, and recombination events with variola virus shaped the complex evolutionary path of historical American horsepox-based smallpox vaccines [PDF]
Vaccinia virus is the active component of all modern smallpox vaccines after the mid-20th century, but it is uncertain to what extent cowpox, vaccinia, and horsepox viruses were used to produce vaccines before then.
Aline R. V. Souza+4 more
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Evidence of Long-Distance Aerial Convection of Variola Virus and Implications for Disease Control [PDF]
Two distinct phenomena of airborne transmission of variola virus (smallpox) were described in the pre-eradication era—direct respiratory transmission, and a unique phenomenon of transmission over greater distances, referred to as “aerial ...
Chandini Raina MacIntyre+4 more
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A Multiplex PCR/LDR Assay for the Simultaneous Identification of Category A Infectious Pathogens: Agents of Viral Hemorrhagic Fever and Variola Virus. [PDF]
CDC designated category A infectious agents pose a major risk to national security and require special action for public health preparedness. They include viruses that cause viral hemorrhagic fever (VHF) syndrome as well as variola virus, the agent of ...
Sanchita Das+12 more
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Biological threat preparedness through vaccine development and stockpiling: challenges and strategic implications [PDF]
Biological threat agents such as Bacillus anthracis, Variola virus, and botulinum toxin pose serious risk to national security and public health due to their high transmissibility, lethality, and potential for weaponization.
Jungeun Lee
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EPIPOX: Immunoinformatic Characterization of the Shared T-Cell Epitome between Variola Virus and Related Pathogenic Orthopoxviruses [PDF]
Concerns that variola viruses might be used as bioweapons have renewed the interest in developing new and safer smallpox vaccines. Variola virus genomes are now widely available, allowing computational characterization of the entire T-cell epitome and ...
Magdalena Molero-Abraham+4 more
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