Viruses without Borders: Deadly Outbreaks of the 21st Century

Rapid trends in globalization, increase in population, and geneticdiversity of viruses collectively provide grounds for emergenceand reemergence of viral outbreaks that are threats to overallcontinuum of human development. In addition to human factors,environmental factors such as water, soil, mosquito vectors andanimals are also contributing to the outbreaks of viral diseases. Inthe past two decades, we have witnessed some of the deadly viralepidemics of the 21st century such as the Ebola virus epidemic inWest Africa [1], Yellow Fever outbreak in Angola [2], the 2009 flupandemic [3]. Dengue Fever [4], and Zika outbreak especially inBrazil [5], just a few to mention. From such outbreaks occurringunpredictably around the world, infectious diseases epidemiologistsand global health experts acknowledge viruses have now evolvedto rapidly cross international borders. In countries where resourcesof rapid viral detection and prevention programs are indeed limited,these outbreaks have produced devastating consequences not onlyoverwhelming the local health departments’ capacity to confrontthe epidemics, but also, they have had serious and measurabledevastating effects on economy and human productivity [6].