Our research focuses on viruses that are potentially devastating for the economy, food security and the wellbeing of animals and humans. These include diseases like foot-and-mouth disease and bluetongue, which affect certain livestock, and zoonotic viruses like avian and swine influenza that can spread from animals to humans.
The list below contains the main viruses we work on. Each page gives details about the family the virus belongs to and the diseases associated with that virus. For example bluetongue virus (BTV), African horse sickness (AHS) and epizootic haemorrhagic disease virus (EHDV) all belong to the Reoviridae family, and SARS-CoV-2 (the cause of COVID-19) and infectious bronchitis virus (IBV) are within the coronavirus family (Coronaviridae).
African horse sickness virus (AHSV) infects all equine species, including horses, donkeys, mules and zebras as well as camels. It is one of the most deadly equine viruses and can be fatal in up to 90% of infected susceptible animals...
African swine fever (ASF) is a contagious disease that can be fatal for all infected domestic pigs and wild boar. Pigs are usually infected through direct contact with other infected pigs, or indirectly by eating infected meat or meat products...
Alkhumra haemorrhagic fever virus (AHFV) is an emerging zoonotic pathogen which was first observed in 1995 in the blood of human patients in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. Although the transmission of AHFV is not very well understood, the virus...
Avian influenza
(AI) viruses, commonly known as bird flu, infect a wide range of hosts, including humans and swine. The natural reservoir of avian influenza (AI) viruses is in populations of wild aquatic birds such as ducks and shorebirds...
Avian leukosis virus (ALV) infects mainly chickens but can also infect other avian species such as pheasants, partridges and quail. The virus is not highly contagious and is readily inactivated by disinfectants. ALV can be vertically transmitted, passing directly from...
Bluetongue virus (BTV) infects wild and domestic ruminants, and is responsible for causing the severe haemorrhagic disease, bluetongue (BT). It can infect domestic ruminants including cattle, sheep and goats, along with wild animals such as buffalo, deer, antelope and camels...
Bovine respiratory syncytial virus (BRSV) is a respiratory virus that infects mainly cattle, but can also infect sheep and goats. The disease is spread by infected animal aerosols, direct contact and transmission through objects (fomites). In outbreaks, infection rate is...
Chikungunya virus (CHIKV) can infect humans and is primarily transmitted by mosquitoes, specifically
Aedes aegypti and
Aedes albopictus . The virus can also be transmitted from mother to child during pregnancy or birth. Natural reservoirs of the virus include...
Classical swine fever virus (CSFV) infects pigs and wild boar. It belongs to the genus
Pestivirus in the family
Flaviviridae , where only one serotype has been classified, but multiple strains exist which vary in virulence. CSFV is an...
Crimean-Congo haemorrhagic fever (CCHF) is a severe tick-borne disease with a high mortality rate in humans and is considered a priority emerging disease by the World Health Organization (WHO). In addition to humans, the Crimean-Congo haemorrhagic fever virus (CCHFV) also...
Dengue virus (DENV) is an arthropod-borne virus (arbovirus) primarily transmitted by infected mosquitoes, specifically
Aedes aegypti and
Aedes albopictus . DENV can also spread from pregnant women to the foetus via the placenta. There have also been reports of...
Epizootic haemorrhagic disease virus (EHDV) infects deer, sheep, and cattle. Deer are the most likely to exhibit severe disease. EHDV is not transmitted from animal to animal, but by the bites of
Culicoides biting midges. Outbreaks typically occur from late...
Pages
Show All Viruses
