Environmental Virology and Virus Ecology

Environmental Virology and Virus Ecology
Author:
Publisher: Academic Press
Total Pages: 356
Release: 2018-06-14
Genre: Medical
ISBN: 0128144165

Environmental Virology, Volume 101, the latest in the Advances in Virus Research series, contains new, informative updates on the topic. First published in 1953, this series covers a diverse range of in-depth reviews, providing a valuable overview of the current field of virology. Updates to this release include sections on the host landscape and vector behavior, key determinants of plant virus evolution and emergence, plant virome analysis using spatial metagenomics, host range evolution in generalist viruses, the influence of environment, water-mediated spread and transmission of viruses, viruses transmitted by means other than insect vectors, and more. Contains contributions from leading authorities in the field of virology Informs and updates on all the latest developments in the field Features a diverse range of virology topics, including discussions of host landscape and vector behavior and viruses transmitted by means other than insect vectors

Virus Ecology and Disturbances: Impact of Environmental Disruption on the Viruses of Microorganisms

Virus Ecology and Disturbances: Impact of Environmental Disruption on the Viruses of Microorganisms
Author: Stephen Tobias Abedon
Publisher: Frontiers Media SA
Total Pages: 95
Release: 2015-03-26
Genre: Microbiology
ISBN: 2889194485

Viruses infect numerous microorganisms including, predominantly, Bacteria (bacteriophages or phages) but also Archaea, Protists, and Fungi. They are the most abundant and ubiquitous biological entities on Earth and are important drivers of ecosystem functioning. Little is known, however, about the vast majority of these viruses of microorganisms, or VoMs. Modern techniques such as metagenomics have enabled the discovery and description of more presumptive VoMs than ever before, but also have exposed gaps in our understanding of VoM ecology. Exploring the ecology of these viruses – which is how they interact with host organisms, the abiotic environment, larger organisms, and even other viruses across a variety of environments and conditions – is the next frontier. Integration of a growing molecular understanding of VoMs with ecological studies will expand our knowledge of ecosystem dynamics. Ecology can be studied at multiple levels including individual organisms, populations, communities, whole ecosystems, and the entire biosphere. Ecology additionally can consider normal, equilibrium conditions or instead perturbations. Perturbations are of particular interest because measuring the effect of disturbances on VoM-associated communities provides important windows into how VoMs contribute to ecosystem dynamics. These disturbances in turn can be studied through in vitro, in vivo, and in situ experimentation, measuring responses by VoM-associated communities to changes in nutrient availability, stress, physical disruption, seasonality, etc., and could apply to studies at all ecological levels. These are considered here across diverse systems and environments.

Microbiomes of the Built Environment

Microbiomes of the Built Environment
Author: National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine
Publisher: National Academies Press
Total Pages: 318
Release: 2017-10-06
Genre: Science
ISBN: 0309449839

People's desire to understand the environments in which they live is a natural one. People spend most of their time in spaces and structures designed, built, and managed by humans, and it is estimated that people in developed countries now spend 90 percent of their lives indoors. As people move from homes to workplaces, traveling in cars and on transit systems, microorganisms are continually with and around them. The human-associated microbes that are shed, along with the human behaviors that affect their transport and removal, make significant contributions to the diversity of the indoor microbiome. The characteristics of "healthy" indoor environments cannot yet be defined, nor do microbial, clinical, and building researchers yet understand how to modify features of indoor environmentsâ€"such as building ventilation systems and the chemistry of building materialsâ€"in ways that would have predictable impacts on microbial communities to promote health and prevent disease. The factors that affect the environments within buildings, the ways in which building characteristics influence the composition and function of indoor microbial communities, and the ways in which these microbial communities relate to human health and well-being are extraordinarily complex and can be explored only as a dynamic, interconnected ecosystem by engaging the fields of microbial biology and ecology, chemistry, building science, and human physiology. This report reviews what is known about the intersection of these disciplines, and how new tools may facilitate advances in understanding the ecosystem of built environments, indoor microbiomes, and effects on human health and well-being. It offers a research agenda to generate the information needed so that stakeholders with an interest in understanding the impacts of built environments will be able to make more informed decisions.

Under the Weather

Under the Weather
Author: National Research Council
Publisher: National Academies Press
Total Pages: 161
Release: 2001-06-29
Genre: Science
ISBN: 0309072786

Since the dawn of medical science, people have recognized connections between a change in the weather and the appearance of epidemic disease. With today's technology, some hope that it will be possible to build models for predicting the emergence and spread of many infectious diseases based on climate and weather forecasts. However, separating the effects of climate from other effects presents a tremendous scientific challenge. Can we use climate and weather forecasts to predict infectious disease outbreaks? Can the field of public health advance from "surveillance and response" to "prediction and prevention?" And perhaps the most important question of all: Can we predict how global warming will affect the emergence and transmission of infectious disease agents around the world? Under the Weather evaluates our current understanding of the linkages among climate, ecosystems, and infectious disease; it then goes a step further and outlines the research needed to improve our understanding of these linkages. The book also examines the potential for using climate forecasts and ecological observations to help predict infectious disease outbreaks, identifies the necessary components for an epidemic early warning system, and reviews lessons learned from the use of climate forecasts in other realms of human activity.

Viruses, Bacteria and Fungi in the Built Environment

Viruses, Bacteria and Fungi in the Built Environment
Author: F Pacheco Torgal
Publisher: Woodhead Publishing
Total Pages: 350
Release: 2021-12-02
Genre: Technology & Engineering
ISBN: 0323852211

Viruses, Bacteria and Fungi in the Built Environment: Designing Healthy Indoor Environments opens with a brief introduction to viruses, bacteria and fungi in the built environment and discusses their impact on human health. Sections discuss the microbiology of building materials, the airborne transmission of viruses and bacteria in the built environment, and plumbing-associated microbiome. As the first book on this important area to be written in light of the COVID-19 pandemic, this work will be a valuable reference resource for researchers, civil engineers, architects, postgraduate students, contractors and other professionals working and interested in the field of the built environment. Elements of building design, including choice of materials, ventilation and plumbing can have important implications for the microbiology of a building, and consequently, the health of the building's occupants. This important new reference work explains the microbiology of buildings and disease control in the built environment to those who design and implement new construction and renovate. Provides an essential guide on the microbiology of buildings, covering bacteria, fungi and viruses on surfaces, in air and in water Comprehensively examines how humidity influences fungal growth in several building materials Includes important information about the airborne transmission of infectious agents Addresses ventilation design to improve human health Presents the first book on disease control in buildings since the COVID-19 pandemic

Viruses and Environment

Viruses and Environment
Author: Edouard Kurstak
Publisher: Elsevier
Total Pages: 696
Release: 2012-12-02
Genre: Medical
ISBN: 032314327X

Viruses and Environment contains the proceedings of the Third International Conference on Comparative Virology, held at Mont Gabriel, Quebec, Canada on May 1977. The primary focus of the conference is the ecology of viruses, that is, the interrelationships between organisms and their environment. Organized into seven parts with a total of 33 chapters, this book centers on the impact of viruses on the environment; the persistent virus infections of man, vertebrate and invertebrate animals, and plants; and the smallest disease agents, the viroids. In particular, this book describes the reservoirs of viruses, such as arthropod vectors, water, cultivated plants, and wild animals; safety considerations concerning the use of live virus vaccines; and the viral insecticides. The use of bacterial viruses in genetic engineering is also addressed. This treatise will be valuable to research workers in medical and biomedical fields; biological control; and animal and plant quarantine. It will also benefit the university teachers and graduate students.

Methods For Recovering Viruses From The Environment

Methods For Recovering Viruses From The Environment
Author: Gerald Berg
Publisher: CRC Press
Total Pages: 242
Release: 2018-01-18
Genre: Science
ISBN: 1351082914

This book argues, that without methods, there can be no research. Effective research requires effective methods, not always easy to come by. The development of methods in environmental virology became a focus of growing interest about two decades ago. Progress has been significant since that time in pure experimental systems, where there are no interferences, consistent high recoveries of viruses from environmental waters has been achievable for some time. In the natural environment, however, in relatively clean waters, substances such as humic and fulvic acids interfere with viral recoveries and average recovery rates probably do not reach 20%. With sewage sludges and shellfish, recoveries are undoubtedly much lower. Yet, even relatively low viral recovery rates have made possible the detection of viral hazards in drinking waters. The hazards that exist are undoubtedly much greater than those demonstrated with the relatively inefficient methods inefficient methods developed thus far. Improving methods, as they are developed in the years to come, will undoubtedly bring the true extent of the hazards into better perspective.

Environmental Virology

Environmental Virology
Author: V. Chalapati Rao
Publisher: Springer Science & Business Media
Total Pages: 97
Release: 2013-03-09
Genre: Science
ISBN: 1461597617

We have attempted to provide a concise and up to date account of human viruses in the environment with attention to basic tools now available for monitoring viruses. We have aimed this introductory volume at young students, teachers and investigators in microbiology, virology, environmental engineering and health sciences. As the routes for virus dissemination become more varied, there is an enhanced potential for causing infection in humans. Improvement in the development of control strategies will alleviate the magnitude of viral pollution of the environment. This volume will introduce the reader to an area of science which of necessity must utilize a variety of disciplines. V.CHALAPATIRAO JOSEPH L. MELNICK v We humbly dedicate this volume to the cherished memory of our parents Contents Preface v 1 Introduction 1 References 9 2 Human enteric viruses in polluted water 10 Enteroviruses 10 Hepatitis A virus 11 Non-A, non-B hepatitis 12 Norwalk and Norwalk-like agents 12 Rotaviruses 13 Adenoviruses 13 Parvoviruses 14 Enteric viruses in the etiology of water-borne disease 14 Summary 16 References 16 3 Monitoring for viruses in wastewater and water 18 Why water should be monitored for viral contamination 18 Methods for monitoring viral contamination 19 Virus isolation from sewage, and surface and drinking water 25 Indicators for viruses 30 Standards for viruses in drinking water 32 Future developments in virus detection 33 Summary 38 References 39 4 Virus removal by treatment processes 41 Advanced waste treatment (tertiary treatment) 46 Disinfection 49 Summary 54 References 54