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The etiological structure of influenza and other acute respiratory viral infections including their rate of incidence in St. Petersburg and Leningrad region during 4 epidemic seasons has been studied. Seasonality of some respiratory viruses was shown and peaks of circulation of RSV, adenovirus, parainfluenza viruses, rhinovirus, bocavirus, metapneumovirus and coronavirus were marked. The interference of influenza A viruses and RSV, RSV and rhinoviruses was highlighted. A high incidence of adenovirus infection in organized communities and RSV infection in children was revealed., Competing Interests: The authors declare no conflict of interest.

New contemporary data about new infectious diseases of XXI century are presented. Data on morbidity and mortality from severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS, atypical pneumonia) and avian influenza are analyzed and compared with World Health Organization data on human influenza. Biologic characteristics of avian influenza virus A/H5N1 are discussed as well as possibility of its human-to-human transmission. Principles of SARS and avian influenza infections transmission as zoonoses are described as well as mechanisms of transmission impeding their ability to infect humans. It has been argued that SARS should be regarded as contagious infection, whereas avian influenza - as non-contagious. Features of all stages of epidemic process of these infections are analyzed.

The coronavirus (CV) infection has been reproduced on monkeys (Macaca mulatta) for the first time. The strain CVRM 281, obtained from rhesus monkey who died of the spontaneous CV injection, has been used for the infection. The experimental CV infection has a chronic current with periodical relapses and virus persistence. Gastrointestinal tract (enterocolitis) and respiratory tract (pneumonia) are damaged exhibiting characteristic histological lesions. The monkey model of the CV injection can be used to solve obscure questions of human one.

Properties of 20 coronavirus (CV) isolates obtained from spontaneously infected Papio hamadryas and rhesus monkeys were investigated. Two of them were selected as simian CV prototype strains-CVRM 281 (rhesus monkey) and CVP 250 (Papio hamadryas), and can be offered as candidates to the Coronaviridae family. They are closely related to each other, but differ in some biological properties and polypeptides. These strains belong to the 2nd antigen group of mammalian CV with the prototype strain HCV OC 43 but differ from the latter. The strain CVRM 281 induces experimental CV infection which can be used as a model for investigations of some obscure aspects of human infection. The properties of these viruses suggest their usefulness for diagnostic purposes.