Establishment of a laboratory of virology at the faculty of medical sciences for research and diagnosis of important viral pathogens

ARMANDO DAMIANI; ANTONELLA LOSINNO

Mendoza

Simposio; I Simposio Internacional de Medicina Traslacional, Facultad de Medicina (UNCuyo); 2018

Facultad de Medicina, UNCUyo

Infectious diseases caused by viruses are of great public health significance with human herpesviruses as leading cause of human viral disease, second only to influenza and cold viruses. Moreover, the recent emergence and re-emergence of viral infections transmitted by vectors?Zika, chikungunya, dengue, West Nile, yellow fever and others?is a cause for international concern. In this regard, the establishment of a Laboratory of Virology with a role in diagnosis, monitoring and research at the Faculty of Medical Sciences is critical. As a first steps towards the establishment of such laboratory, research in the field of virology was initiated last year. The construction of mutant variants of human herpesvirus type 2 (HSV-2), the most common cause of genital herpes, are under development. Such mutant viruses will be characterized in vitro and in vivo for potential use as vaccine candidates.