Initially published in 1982 as The Marburg Virus, Johnson's The Virusreveals uncanny parallels with the current corona virus: the outbreak of a mysterious and deadly disease, the origins of which are traced to a medical student infected by a green monkey. It features an epidemiologist as its hero and a desperate search for a vaccine...
Ground-breaking, evidence-based book asks how many lives were lost because of Chinas negligence about lab-leaked SARS-CoV-2. In a disturbing reconstruction of events by two of the most reputable scientists in the world, a new book reveals for the first time how Chinese authorities and elite Wuhan scientists knew about SARS-CoV-2s menacing biological features from the start but remain silent to this day. In The Origin of the Virus (Clinical Press) Dr Steven Quay and Prof Angus Dalgleish, working with Italian reporter Paolo Barnard, show how China engaged in lies, omissions and obfuscations to cover up the laboratory origin of the virus. Had they immediately alerted the international community and policymakers of the extremely pathogenic molecular machinery present in SARS-CoV-2's genome, very large numbers of lives may have been spared, argue Quay, Dalgleish and Barnard. The authors provide a shocking account of the extreme experiments that led to the outbreak of the worst pandemic since the 1918 Spanish influenza. They broaden the censure to explain why some American and British scientists thwarted a proper investigation of the origin of COVID-19. Despite its impeccable scientific grounding the book is both a readable and gripping account that, for the first time, allows the public to partake in what lies at the heart of the many scandals surrounding the birth of the most deadly virus in modern times.
For years, scientists have been warning us that a pandemic was all but inevitable. Now it's here, and the rest of us have a lot to learn. Fortunately, science writer Carl Zimmer is here to guide us. In this compact volume, he tells the story of how the smallest living things known to science can bring an entire planet of people to a halt--and what we can learn from how we've defeated them in the past. Planet of Viruses covers such threats as Ebola, MERS, and chikungunya virus; tells about recent scientific discoveries, such as a hundred-million-year-old virus that infected the common ancestor of armadillos, elephants, and humans; and shares new findings that show why climate change may lead to even deadlier outbreaks. Zimmer’s lucid explanations and fascinating stories demonstrate how deeply humans and viruses are intertwined. Viruses helped give rise to the first life-forms, are responsible for many of our most devastating diseases, and will continue to control our fate for centuries. Thoroughly readable, and, for all its honesty about the threats, as reassuring as it is frightening, A Planet of Viruses is a fascinating tour of a world we all need to better understand.
Persistent Viral Infections Edited by Rafi Ahmed Emory Vaccine Center, Atlanta, USA and Irvin S. Y. Chen UCLA School of Medicine, Los Angeles, USA During the past decade much of our attention has focused on diseases associated with viral persistence. Major breakthroughs in immunology, and the advent of molecular approaches to study pathogenesis have increased our understanding of the complex virus-host interactions that occur during viral persistence. Persistent Viral Infections focuses on: * The pathogenesis and immunology of chronic infections * Animal models that provide, or have the potential to provide, major insights This volume will be essential reading for virologists, immunologists, oncologists and neurologists.
Viruses are the last frontier of undiscovered life on our planet. The most abundant type of organism on Earth, they infect all types of cellular life, and, as micro-organisms that cause disease in their hosts, they are highly opportunistic and relentlessly efficient. They exist at the vanguard of DNA variance, exhibiting more structural diversity than plants, animals, archaea, or even bacteria. This 21st-century guide offers an engaging introductory section explaining exactly what viruses are and how they operate, followed by individual profiles of 101 of the world's most notable examples, each with its own dazzling mugshot
Join science expert Dr Ben Martynoga and illustrator extraordinaire Moose Allain on a fascinating, sometimes funny, and occasionally scary journey through the world of viruses.Explore the science behind viruses and the COVID-19 pandemic in a fascinating story of hijacked human cells and our own internal emergency services.Along the way, you'll learn what viruses are, how they work, and how we can overcome - or at least learn to live alongside - those that do us harm.