They say mild winters bring mosquito plagues in the following spring/summer. This could also be the case this year – now that summer has eventually come. Actually, there seems to be an even bigger problem with mosquitoes in Germany today. The climate change – which has so far had rather mild consequences in our latitudes […]
More than one month ago, the Republic of Korea confirmed its first case of Middle East Respiratory Syndrome (MERS) infection. Since then, the number has raised to 180 including 31 deaths (WHO, 26.06.2015). One MERS infection has been reported in China so far. The man has already recovered and will leave the hospital within the
This is about two diseases with very similar symptoms, but completely different causes: chikungunya virus infection and rheumatoid arthritis. The chikungunya virus (CHIKV) is transmitted to humans by mosquito bites, particularly from yellow fever mosquito (Aedes aegypti) and the Asian tiger mosquito (Aedes albopictus). These insects may not only transmit CHIKV, but also dengue fever,
Clinicians and biologists expect increasing numbers of infections with hantaviruses in Germany this year due to the ongoing strong reproduction of the bank vole and the striped field mouse. The rodents function as reservoirs and spread the virus through their excrements. Dust, contaminated with the pathogen, may be inhaled by humans when sweeping a shed
A large cross-sectional serostudy of blood donors in Saudi Arabia has revealed a significant number of subclinical infections with Middle East respiratory syndrome coronavirus (MERS), which pose a likely source of infection in previously unexplained outbreaks of MERS. Notably, the prevalence of antibodies against MERS coronavirus (MERS-CoV) was significantly higher in persons with regular exposure
