Recent advances in marburgvirus research

F1000Res. 2019 May 21:8:F1000 Faculty Rev-704. doi: 10.12688/f1000research.17573.1. eCollection 2019.

Abstract

Marburgviruses are closely related to ebolaviruses and cause a devastating disease in humans. In 2012, we published a comprehensive review of the first 45 years of research on marburgviruses and the disease they cause, ranging from molecular biology to ecology. Spurred in part by the deadly Ebola virus outbreak in West Africa in 2013-2016, research on all filoviruses has intensified. Not meant as an introduction to marburgviruses, this article instead provides a synopsis of recent progress in marburgvirus research with a particular focus on molecular biology, advances in animal modeling, and the use of Egyptian fruit bats in infection experiments.

Keywords: Egyptian rousette; Marburg virus; filovirus; filoviruses; marburgviruses; viral proteins.

Publication types

  • Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't
  • Review

MeSH terms

  • Africa, Western
  • Animals
  • Biomedical Research / trends
  • Chiroptera*
  • Disease Models, Animal
  • Disease Outbreaks
  • Ebolavirus
  • Humans
  • Marburgvirus / pathogenicity*