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Discusses the 1995 medical report of the first rabies case to be documented in a human in the United States. Narration of the case of a child infected by a bat and who was diagnosed positive for rabies by direct fluorescent antibody (DFA) testing at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC); Bats' implication as wildlife reservoir for variants of rabies virus transmitted to humans.

The article discusses the health-related danger that is associated with bat rabies, and it mentions how close to 59,000 people around the world die each year from rabies. Symptoms of rabies such as fever, headache, and difficulty swallowing are examined, along with the roles that nurses play in diagnosing bat rabies in patients. It states that two types of bat rabies vaccines are available in Great Britain. The fatal nature of bat rabies is assessed.

While bats are increasingly recognized as a source of coronavirus epidemics, the diversity and emergence potential of bat coronaviruses remains to be fully understood. Among 1779 bat samples collected in China, diverse coronaviruses were detected in 32 samples from five different bat species by RT-PCR. Two novel alphacoronaviruses, Rhinolophus sinicus bat coronavirus HKU32 (Rs-BatCoV HKU32) and Tylonycteris robustula bat coronavirus HKU33 (Tr-BatCoV HKU33), were discovered from Chinese horseshoe bats in Hong Kong and greater bamboo bats in Guizhou Province, respectively. Genome analyses showed that Rs-BatCoV HKU32 is closely related to BatCoV HKU10 and related viruses from diverse bat families, whereas Tr-BatCoV HKU33 is closely related to BtNv-AlphaCoV and similar viruses exclusively from bats of Vespertilionidae family. The close relatedness of Rs-BatCoV HKU32 to BatCoV HKU10 which was also detected in Pomona roundleaf bats from the same country park suggests that these viruses may have the tendency of infecting genetically distant bat populations of close geographical proximity with subsequent genetic divergence. Moreover, the presence of SARSr-CoV ORF7a-like protein in Rs-BatCoV HKU32 suggests a common evolutionary origin of this accessory protein with SARS-CoV, also from Chinese horseshoe bats, an apparent reservoir for coronavirus epidemics. The emergence potential of Rs-BatCoV HKU32 should be explored. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article focuses on a study which estimates how fast different rabies virus lineages of bats spread using models that combine evolutionary relationships and geographical distributions of genetic lineages. Topics discussed include the use of surveillance data of vampire bat-derived rabies among livestock, the use of gene flow among vampire colonies across the Andes from rabies-infected to rabies-free regions to predict viral spread, and the bat's metapopulation and community-scale dynamics.

The article announces that a greater long-fingered bat that was captured in Liberia carried evidence of the Ebola Zaire virus which was present in West Africa from 2013 to 2016, and it mentions the discovery of the Bombali Ebola species and the deaths of thousands of people across West Africa.

The Middle East respiratory syndrome coronavirus (MERS-CoV) emerged in 2012 and caused continual outbreaks worldwide with high mortality. However, no effective anti-MERS-CoV drug is currently available. Recently, numerous evolutionary studies have suggested that MERS-CoV originated from bat coronavirus (BatCoV). We herein reported that three peptides derived from the HR2 region in spike protein of BatCoV HKU4, including HKU4-HR2P1, HKU4-HR2P2 and HKU4-HR2P3, could bind the MERS-CoV HR1-derived peptide to form a six-helix bundle (6-HB) with high stability. Moreover, these peptides, particularly HKU4-HR2P2 and HKU4-HR2P3, exhibited potent inhibitory activity against MERS-CoV S-mediated cell–cell fusion and viral infection, suggesting that these HKU4 HR2-derived peptides could be candidates for futher development as antiviral agents against MERS-CoV infection. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Bats are speculated to be reservoirs of several emerging viruses including coronaviruses (CoVs) that cause serious disease in humans and agricultural animals. These include CoVs that cause severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS), Middle East respiratory syndrome (MERS), porcine epidemic diarrhea (PED) and severe acute diarrhea syndrome (SADS). Bats that are naturally infected or experimentally infected do not demonstrate clinical signs of disease. These observations have allowed researchers to speculate that bats are the likely reservoirs or ancestral hosts for several CoVs. In this review, we follow the CoV outbreaks that are speculated to have originated in bats. We review studies that have allowed researchers to identify unique adaptation in bats that may allow them to harbor CoVs without severe disease. We speculate about future studies that are critical to identify how bats can harbor multiple strains of CoVs and factors that enable these viruses to "jump" from bats to other mammals. We hope that this review will enable readers to identify gaps in knowledge that currently exist and initiate a dialogue amongst bat researchers to share resources to overcome present limitations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The maintenance mechanisms of ebolaviruses in African forest ecosystems are still unknown, but indirect evidences point at the involvement of some bat species. Despite intense research, the main bat-maintenance hypothesis has not been confirmed yet. The alternative hypotheses of a non-bat maintenance host or a maintenance community including, or not, several bat and other species, deserves more investigation. However, African forest ecosystems host a large biodiversity and abound in potential maintenance hosts. How does one puzzle out? Since recent studies have revealed that several bat species have been exposed to ebolaviruses, the common denominator to these hypotheses is that within the epidemiological cycle, some bats species must be exposed to the viruses and infected by these potential alternative hosts. Under this constraint, and given the peculiar ecology of bats (roosting behaviour, habitat utilisation, and flight mode), we review the hosts and transmission pathways that can lead to bat exposure and infection to ebolaviruses. In contrast to the capacity of bats to transmit ebolaviruses and other pathogens to many hosts, our results indicate that only a limited number of hosts and pathways can lead to the transmission of ebolaviruses to bats, and that the alternative maintenance host, if it exists, must be amongst them. A list of these pathways is provided, along with protocols to prioritise and investigate these alternative hypotheses. In conclusion, taking into account the ecology of bats and their known involvement in ebolaviruses ecology drastically reduces the list of potential alternative maintenance hosts for ebolaviruses. Understanding the natural history of ebolaviruses is a health priority, and investigating these alternative hypotheses could complete the current effort focused on the role of bats. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Bat-acquired rabies is becoming increasingly common, and its diagnosis could be missed partly because its clinical presentation differs from that of dog-acquired rabies. We reviewed the scientific literature to compare the pathogenesis of rabies in bats and carnivores-including dogs-and related this pathogenesis to differences in the clinical presentation of bat-acquired and dog-acquired rabies in human beings. For bat-acquired rabies, we found that the histological site of exposure is usually limited to the skin, the anatomical site of exposure is more commonly the face, and the virus might be more adapted for entry via the skin than for dog-acquired rabies. These factors could help to explain several differences in clinical presentation between individuals with bat-acquired and those with dog-acquired rabies. A better understanding of these differences should improve the recording of a patient's history, enable drawing up of a more sophisticated list of clinical characteristics, and therefore obtain an earlier diagnosis of rabies after contact with a bat or carnivore that has rabies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article discusses bats as carriers of the coronavirus that causes the emerging infectious disease Middle East respiratory syndrome (MERS). Topics include a study by Columbia University virologist Ian Lipkin that found a fragment of RNA in the feces of an Egyptian tomb bat that matched the MERS virus exactly, aspects of bats' immune systems and behaviors that make them a natural reservoir for diseases, and the public health risks from human encroachment on bat habitats.

The article focuses on the study which reveals that bats are hosting an average of 1.79 zoonotic viruses per species compared to rodents conducted by Angela Luis and his colleagues at the Colorado State University in Fort Collins.

The article focuses on the statements of Gerald T. Keusch and Peter Dazak on the emergence of bats as definitive vector for emerging viruses during the meeting entitled "Improving Food Safety through One Health" in Washington, D.C. On December 13-14, 2011. Dazak says that the natural reservoirs for SARS-like viruses were animals. Keusch adds that studies on bat transmission of pathogens were hindered by the difficulties in setting experimental bat colonies.

The article discusses two reports within the issue regarding epidemiological research on diseases in bats. According to the author, bats have been identified as carriers for many diseases, including rabies, Ebola, and severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS), but the ability to predict when an infectious disease may be transmitted between species has been difficult. An overview of both research studies is presented, including one which provides important insights into the dynamics of cross-species transmission of diseases, such as rabies, and one on the emerging fungal disease white-nose syndrome that is threatening bat populations in the Northeastern U.S.

In this article, the author discusses the failure for the intervention against clinical rabies. The author refers the case of a physician from the Netherlands who suffered a tragic death due to Duvenhage virus from bat in Kenya which stress the importance of primary vaccination to travelers abroad. He states that new paradigms are needed for the experimental development of biologics against rabies.

The article investigates fruit bats as the plausible reservoirs of Ebola virus in Africa. Researchers have collected candidate animals from sites near infected chimpanzees and gorilla carcasses in Gabon and Republic of Congo. Their examination detected immunoglobulin G antibody to Ebola antigens in three fruit bat species.

Discusses bat rabies in Great Britain and European bat lyssavirus type 2a (EBLV-2), in light of a case in Scotland. The passive surveillance of bat lyssavirus by the Veterinary Laboratories Agency in United Kingdom; Suggestion that general practitioners and emergency departments need to be made aware of the risk of rabies so appropriate treatment can be started; Prophylaxis treatment for exposure to bats; The risk to public health; Advice from the Department of Health for bat handlers; The law making bats a protected species.

Reports on the case of a boy in Quebec, Canada who died from rabies in October, 2000. Symptoms of the patient, including dysphagia and body tremors; Opinion that he contracted the rabies from a bat bite.

Filoviruses Ebolavirus (EBOV) and Marburgvirus (MARV) cause haemorrhagic fevers with high mortality rates, posing significant threats to public health. To understand transmission into human populations, filovirus dynamics within reservoir host populations must be understood. Studies have directly linked filoviruses to bats, but the mechanisms allowing viral persistence within bat populations are poorly understood. Theory suggests seasonal birthing may decrease the probability of pathogen persistence within populations, but data suggest MARV may persist within colonies of seasonally breeding Egyptian fruit bats, Rousettus aegyptiacus. I synthesize available filovirus and bat data in a stochastic compartmental model to explore fundamental questions relating to filovirus ecology: can filoviruses persist within isolated bat colonies; do critical community sizes exist; and how do host–pathogen relationships affect spillover transmission potential? Synchronous annual breeding and shorter incubation periods did not allow filovirus persistence, whereas bi-annual breeding and longer incubation periods, such as reported for Egyptian fruit bats and EBOV in experimental studies, allowed persistence in colony sizes often found in nature. Serological data support the findings, with bats from species with two annual birth pulses more likely to be seropositive (odds ratio (OR) 4.4, 95% confidence interval (CI) 2.5–8.7) than those with one, suggesting that biannual birthing is necessary for filovirus persistence. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Summarizes the case investigation of a 44-year-old man in California who died from a bat-associated strain of rabies. Symptoms; Diffuse motor-neuron loss; Discovery of Negri bodies in formalin-fixed brain specimens; Human rabies cases in the United States from 1980 to 1994; Treatment of rabies inflicted by bats.

Offers information about post-exposure prophylaxis for suspected cases of rabies and discusses this topic with specific suggestions for bat bites. When rabies was first reported in isectivorous bats in the United States; The difficulty in detecting some bat bites; Changing bat-encounter guidelines in the United States.

Opinion. Comments on the incidence of human deaths from cryptic bat rabies in the United States. Similarity between viruses infecting the patients in the US with those found in insectivorous bats; Mechanism by which rabies infects man; Explanations offered for the cryptic exposure to bat rabies; Danger of insectivorous bat-associated rabies in North America.

Discusses the association of bats with human disease. Record of rabies and histoplasmosis transmission to man; Rabies as caused by rhabdovirus subgroup known as lyssaviruses; Available vaccines to protect against European strains and classical rabies strain; Link between bats and human histoplasmosis.