Molecular characterization of lumpy skin disease virus during the first outbreak of lumpy skin disease in Northern Himalayas, India.

Lumpy skin disease (LSD) is a highly contagious and fatal transboundary viral disease of cattle and water buffaloes caused by the Lumpy Skin Disease virus (LSDV) which belongs to the genus Capripoxvirus of the Poxviridae family. The disease causes huge economic impact and has been listed as a notifiable disease by World Organization for Animal Health. We present the molecular epidemiology of an LSD outbreak, the first-ever outbreak of the disease in the Union Territory (UT) of Jammu and Kashmir, India; a region lying in Northern Himalayas.

Breaking Barriers: Animal viruses as oncolytic and immunotherapeutic agents for human cancers.

Oncolytic viruses, defined as viruses capable of lysing cancer cells, emerged as a groundbreaking class of therapeutic entities poised to revolutionize cancer treatment. Their mode of action encompasses both direct tumor cell lysis and the indirect enhancement of anti-tumor immune responses. Notably, four leading contenders in this domain, Rigvir® in Latvia, T-VEC in the United States, H101 in China and Teserpaturev (DELYTACT®) in Japan, have earned approval for treating metastatic melanoma (Rigvir and T-VEC), nasopharyngeal carcinoma and malignant glioma, respectively.

Nipah and Hendra Viruses: Deadly Zoonotic Paramyxoviruses with the Potential to Cause the Next Pandemic.

Nipah and Hendra viruses are deadly zoonotic paramyxoviruses with a case fatality rate of upto 75%. The viruses belong to the genus henipavirus in the family , a family of negative-sense single-stranded RNA viruses. The natural reservoirs of NiV and HeV are bats (flying foxes) in which the virus infection is asymptomatic.

Predominance of rotavirus genotype G6P[11] in diarrhoeic lambs.

Out of 500 faecal samples from lambs with diarrhoea in Jammu and Kashmir, India, 66 (13.2%) were positive for group A rotavirus (GARV) by the latex agglutination test (LAT). Electropherotyping by RNA-polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis revealed the typical GARV 4-2-3-2 migration pattern in 49/66 (74.