Virology

Viruses represent a significant part of the microbial universe, and they are the causative agents of many diseases impacting the global public health landscape. This section is dedicated to significant findings about viruses of animals, plants, insects, and bacteria. With the expanding number of viral spill-over events and the increase in vaccine hesitancy in many parts of the world, research on “old” and newly emerging viral diseases is welcome.

Viruses require a host for propagation and dissemination, so the elucidation of the virus–host interface is critically important. Genetic manipulation and molecular characterization of viruses through in vitro and cell culture experiments helps to form the needed foundation for advanced studies. Animal model development is generally used to expand our understanding of disease and pathology and is a necessity for the evaluation of vaccines and therapeutics. In addition, ecological aspects—such as the search for viral reservoirs—cannot be ignored. We encourage the submission of manuscripts from all areas of basic and translational virology that expand our understanding of viral transmission, molecular virology, animal models, pathogenesis, and countermeasure development.

In this section, original and review articles reporting state-of-the-art developments and covering basic and applied aspects of virology are welcome. Articles that are outside the scope of the subject matter listed here may be referred to another section of Microorganisms.