Encephalitis, viral

Picornavimses are small, nonenveloped RNA vimses. Members of this family include rhino- and enteroviruses, which are responsible for a variety of human diseases (viral respiratory infection, viral meningitis, myocarditis, pericarditis, encephalitis, chronic meningoencephalitis, herpangina, otitis media, neonatal enteroviral disease, and acute exacerbations of asthma). 

Berger EA, Murphy PM, Farber JM (1999) Chemokine receptors as HIV-1 coreceptors roles in viral entry, tropism, and disease. Annu Rev Immunol 17 657-700 Bernasconi S, Cinque P, Peii G, Sozzani S, Crociati A, Torri W, Vicenzi E, Vago L, Lazzarin A, Poli G, Mantovani A (1996) Selective elevation of monocyte chemotactic protein-1 in the cerebrospinal fluid of AIDS patients with cytomegalovirus encephalitis. J Infect Dis 174 1098-1101... 

Cinque P, Vago L, Mengozzi M, Torn V, Ceresa D, Vicenzi E, Transidico P, Vagani A, Sozzani S, Mantovani A, Lazzarin A, PoU G (1998) Elevated cerebrospinal fluid levels of monocyte chemotactic protein-1 correlate with HlV-1 encephalitis and local viral rephcation. AIDS 12 1327-1332... 

Viral vaccines less generally available than those listed in die table include Congo Crimean haemorrhagic fever vaccine, dengue fever vaccine, Japanese encephalitis B vaccine, smallpox vaccine, tick borne encephalitis vaccine, and Venezuelan encephalitis vaccine. 

Viral agents, such as the alpha virus that causes Venezuelan equine encephalitis (VEE) or variola major (the causative agent for smallpox). 

Active immunization against viral agents causing Japanese encephalitis Active immunization against H. influenzae type b infections (major causative agent of meningitis in young children)... 

Other acquired disorders affecting myelin in humans may be secondary to viral infections, neoplasias or immunosuppressive therapy. Acute disseminated encephalomyelitis, also called postinfectious or postimmunization encephalitis, represents a group of disorders usually of mixed viral-immunological etiology. The condition is most commonly related to a spontaneous viral infection, of which major examples are measles, smallpox or chickenpox [1,2]. 

Arsenicals were ineffective in controlling certain bacterial and viral infections. Mice experimentally infected with bacteria (Klebsiella pneumonias) or viruses (pseudorabies, encephalitis, encephalmyocarditis) showed a significant increase in mortality when treated with large doses of arsenicals compared to nonarsenic-treated groups (NAS 1977 Aranyi et al. 1985). 

Despite the protective effect of NO against various viral infections, workers in several studies have shown a harmful role of NO in many systems. NO seems to play a part in the development of pneumonia caused by influenza virus [128], in the pathogenesis in mice of tick-borne encephalitis flavivirus infection [131], and in worsening the course of the murine myocarditis caused by coxsackievirus B3 [132]. In addition, pneumonia in mice induced by herpes simplex virus type 1 could be suppressed by the inhibitor of iNOS [133]. The issue of whether NO acts as an inhibitor of viral replication or as a harmful agent, therefore, remains unanswered. This issue is particularly evident in HIV-1 infection, since NO seems to act as a double-edged sword in the pathogenesis of HIV-1. 

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