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Vaccinia Reporter Viruses for Quantifying Viral Function at All Stages of Gene Expression
Published on: May 15, 2014
[The threat of smallpox]
1Service de microbiologie, CHU Necker-Enfants-Malades, 149, rue de Sèvres, 75015 Paris, France. berche@necker.fr
Comptes Rendus Biologies
|October 24, 2002
Summary
Smallpox, a eradicated contagious disease, poses a severe bioterrorism threat due to its rapid aerosol spread and lack of effective treatments. Enhancing vaccine safety and prevention strategies is crucial for global security.
Area of Science:
- Virology
- Epidemiology
- Public Health
Context:
- Smallpox, a highly contagious viral disease, was eradicated globally in 1977.
- Vaccination programs were discontinued in the 1980s, leading to a population with no immunity.
- The variola virus, responsible for smallpox, is highly adapted to humans and non-pathogenic to animals.
Purpose:
- To highlight the significant bioterrorism threat posed by the smallpox virus.
- To underscore the limitations of current medical countermeasures against smallpox.
- To advocate for improved vaccine safety and revised preventive strategies.
Summary:
- Smallpox is transmitted via aerosols and has a high fatality rate.
- The virus's specificity to humans and lack of animal pathogenicity aided its eradication.
- Reemergence could be devastating due to rapid spread in naive populations via air travel.
Impact:
- The continued existence of smallpox virus stocks represents a major global security risk.
- There are no effective antiviral treatments for smallpox.
- Current vaccines are only effective within four days post-exposure, necessitating urgent development of new strategies.
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