Structural rearrangements of the central region of the morbillivirus attachment protein stalk domain trigger F protein refolding for membrane fusion.
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Measles outbreak associated with an arriving refugee - Los Angeles County, California, August-September 2011.
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Measles is a highly communicable, acute viral illness with potential for severe complications, including death. Although endemic measles was eliminated in the United States in 2000 as a result of widespread vaccination, sporadic measles outbreaks still occur, largely associated with international travel from measles-endemic countries and pockets of unvaccinated persons. On August 26, 2011, the Los Angeles County Department of Public Health (LACDPH) was notified of suspected measles in a refugee from Burma who had arrived in Los Angeles, California, on August 24, after a flight from Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. Passengers on the flight included 31 other refugees who then traveled to seven other states, widening the measles investigation and response activities. In California alone, 50 staff members from LACDPH and the California Department of Public Health (CDPH) interviewed and reinterviewed 298 contacts. Measles was diagnosed in three contacts of the index patient (patient A). The three contacts with measles were two passengers on the same flight as patient A and a customs worker; no secondary cases were identified. Delayed diagnosis of measles in patient A and delayed notification of health officials precluded use of measles-mumps-rubella (MMR) vaccine as an outbreak intervention. This outbreak emphasizes the importance of maintaining a high level of vaccination coverage and continued high vigilance for measles in the United States, particularly among incoming international travelers; clinicians should immediately isolate persons with suspected measles and promptly report them to health authorities. (+info)
Notes from the field: false-positive measles test - Maine, February 2012.
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On February 7, 2012, the Maine Center for Disease Control and Prevention was notified of suspected measles infection in an unvaccinated woman aged 57 years. The patient went to her medical provider on January 30 after 3 days of headache and fever and 2 days of papular rash. The rash began on her neck and spread to her abdomen, legs, and back. Two days later she developed coryza and cough. The rash resolved by February 6. A serum specimen collected on January 31 demonstrated a high titer of measles immunoglobulin M (IgM) and was positive for measles immunoglobulin G (IgG) on testing at a reference laboratory. (+info)
Health assessment and seroepidemiologic survey of potential pathogens in wild Antillean manatees (Trichechus manatus manatus).
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Evaluation of an expanded case definition for vaccine-modified measles in a school outbreak in South Korea in 2010.
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In this study, we have described the clinical characteristics of vaccine-modified measles to assess the performance of an expanded case definition in a school outbreak that occurred in 2010. The sensitivity, specificity, and the positive and negative predictive values were evaluated. Among 74 cases of vaccine-modified measles, 47 (64%) met the original case definition. Fever and rash were observed in 73% (54/74); fever was the most common (96%, 71/74) presenting symptom, and rash was noted in 77% (57/74) of the cases. The original case definition showed an overall sensitivity of 63.5% and a specificity of 100.0%. The expanded case definition combining fever and rash showed a higher sensitivity (72.9%) but a lower specificity (88.2%) than the original. The presence of fever and one or more of cough, coryza, or conjunctivitis scored the highest sensitivity among the combinations of signs and symptoms (77.0%), but scored the lowest specificity (52.9%). The expanded case definition was sensitive in identifying suspected cases of vaccine-modified measles. We suggest using this expanded definition for outbreak investigation in a closed community, and consider further discussions on expanding the case definition of measles for routine surveillance in South Korea. (+info)
Mechanism for active membrane fusion triggering by morbillivirus attachment protein.
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