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Introduction to West Nile Virus

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West Nile Virus

Part of the book series: Methods in Molecular Biology ((MIMB,volume 2585))

Abstract

West Nile virus (WNV) is a mosquito-borne, single-stranded, positive-sense RNA virus belonging to the Flaviviridae family. After WNV gains entry through an infected mosquito bite, it replicates in a variety of human cell types and produces a viremia. Although the majority of infected individuals remain asymptomatic, the manifested symptoms in some people range from a mild fever to severe neurological disorder with high morbidity and mortality. In addition, many who recover from WNV neuroinvasive infection present with long-term deficits, including weakness, fatigue, and cognitive problems. Since entering the USA in 1999, WNV has become the most common mosquito-borne virus in North America. Despite the intensive research over 20 years, there are still no approved vaccines or specific treatments for humans, and it remains an urgent need to understand the pathogenesis of WNV and develop specific therapeutics and vaccines.

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Acknowledgement

This work was supported in part by the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases of the National Institutes of Health R15AI135893 (F.B.).

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Cell and Molecular Biology, Center for Molecular and Cellular Biosciences, The University of Southern Mississippi, Hattiesburg, MS, USA

    Shazeed-Ul Karim & Fengwei Bai

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  1. Shazeed-Ul Karim
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  2. Fengwei Bai
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to Fengwei Bai .

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Editors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Cell and Molecular Biology, Center for Molecular and Cellular Biosciences The University of Southern Mississippi, Hattiesburg, MS, USA

    Fengwei Bai

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Karim, SU., Bai, F. (2023). Introduction to West Nile Virus. In: Bai, F. (eds) West Nile Virus. Methods in Molecular Biology, vol 2585. Humana, New York, NY. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-0716-2760-0_1

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-0716-2760-0_1

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  • Publisher Name: Humana, New York, NY

  • Print ISBN: 978-1-0716-2759-4

  • Online ISBN: 978-1-0716-2760-0

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