Bunyavirus 2020

Dear Colleagues,

The Bunyavirales order was first established in 2017 from the now defunct Bunyaviridae family. The order consists of a large range of negative-strand RNA viruses, but was reclassified due to the discovery of several viruses that could not be classified in to any of the existing genera.

Several of these viruses are important human or animal pathogens, and many have a zoonotic potential.

Increasing reports of diseases and outbreaks linked to bunyaviruses worldwide, as well as regular reports of newly identified members of the order, highlight the need for understanding these viruses and the infections they cause.

Many of these viruses are known to be transmitted to their host (vertebrates or plants) by arthropods, while other bunyaviruses are restricted to a vertebrate host, like hantaviruses.

In recent years, a growing number of bunyaviruses have been discovered that share similarities with known arboviruses. However, these viruses are restricted to only replicating in mosquitoes or insects and have been termed “insect-specific” viruses.

These viruses share important characteristics with each other. However, they also differ substantially in sequence, function, and in the complement of genes that they express. Therefore, it is often not suitable to simply extrapolate findings from one virus and apply it to another.

In recent years, research on bunyaviruses has increased greatly, resulting in many important discoveries.

In this special issue of Viruses, we would like to include research and review articles detailing exciting new findings in fundamental and applied bunyavirus research, thereby providing information on the latest discoveries in the field, exploring the difficulties in working with these viruses, and highlighting areas that need further research in the future.

Prof. Dr. Esther Schnettler
Dr. Benjamin Brennan
Guest Editors

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