?url_ver=Z39.88-2004&rft_val_fmt=info%3Aofi%2Ffmt%3Akev%3Amtx%3Adc&rft.relation=http%3A%2F%2Fd-scholarship-dev.library.pitt.edu%2F26425%2F&rft.title=Antiviral+activity+of+primary+human+trophoblast+conditioned+media+against+rift+valley+fever+virus.&rft.creator=Berback%2C+Jonathan+T&rft.description=Rift+Valley+Fever+Virus+(RVFV)+is+a+Phlebovirus+that+is+found+across+most+of+Africa+with+the+majority+of+cases+coming+from+eastern+Africa+near+Egypt+to+as+far+south+as+South+Africa+and+is+a+significant+public+health+concern.+Aedes+mosquitos+are+the+primary+vectors+of+the+disease%2C+and+as+a+consequence+of+this+cases+are+more+common+after+heavy+rainfall+or+flooding.+RVFV+primarily+infects+domesticated+ruminants%2C+and+epidemics+are+characterized+by+abortion+storms+among+livestock.+During+these+epidemics%2C+people+inevitably+come+into+contact+with+infected+tissues+and+these+people+are+at+the+highest+risk+for+zoonosis.+Domestic+ruminants+are+not+the+only+animals+at+risk+for+spontaneous+abortion+or+juvenile+death%3B+wild+ruminants+and+other+animals+also+develop+similar+outcomes.+RVFV+is+known+to+cause+extensive+fetal+loss+in+animals+but+a+similar+outcome+in+cases+of+human+infections+is+not+well+documented.+Two+published+case+reports+exist+which+suggest+vertical+transmission+events+could+occur+in+humans.+Currently+there+are+only+speculative+in+vitro+models+investigating+the+potential+for+the+vertical+transmission+of+RVFV+have+been+demonstrated.+Primary+Human+Trophoblasts+(PHT)+cells+isolated+from+human+placentas+could+serve+as+a+good+model+for+a+vertical+transmission+event+because+these+cells+serve+as+a+physical+barrier+to+the+placenta+and+have+also+been+shown+to+be+resistant+to+viral+infection.+PHT+cells+express+a+very+unique+cluster+of+miRNA%E2%80%99s+located+on+chromosome+19+and+the+expression+of+these+miRNA%E2%80%99s+is+specific+to+pregnancy+with+expression+dropping+off+shortly+after+birth.+The+viral+resistance+seen+in+PHT+cells+can+also+be+conferred+to+other+cell+types.+One+possible+way+that+viral+resistance+can+be+conferred+to+other+cell+types+is+via+exosome.+Since+RVFV+is+of+public+health+concern+and+potentially+associated+with+fetal+infections+in+humans%2C+we+will+test+the+ability+of+primary+human+trophoblast+conditioned+media+(PHTCM)+to+confer+viral+resistance+to+other+cell+types+against+RVFV.&rft.date=2016-01-27&rft.type=University+of+Pittsburgh+ETD&rft.type=PeerReviewed&rft.format=application%2Fpdf&rft.language=en&rft.identifier=http%3A%2F%2Fd-scholarship-dev.library.pitt.edu%2F26425%2F1%2FBerback_ETD_MPH_12_2015.pdf&rft.identifier=++Berback%2C+Jonathan+T++(2016)+Antiviral+activity+of+primary+human+trophoblast+conditioned+media+against+rift+valley+fever+virus.++Master's+Thesis%2C+University+of+Pittsburgh.++++(Unpublished)++