The role of platelets in the pathogenesis of viral hemorrhagic fevers.

Viral hemorrhagic fevers (VHF) are acute zoonotic diseases that, early on, seem to cause platelet destruction or dysfunction. Here we present the four major ways viruses affect platelet development and function and new evidence of molecular factors that are preferentially induced by the more pathoge...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:PLoS Neglected Tropical Diseases
Main Authors: Juan C Zapata, Dermot Cox, Maria S Salvato
Format: Article in Journal/Newspaper
Language:English
Published: Public Library of Science (PLoS) 2014
Subjects:
Online Access:https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pntd.0002858
https://doaj.org/article/5492912855814f3eb084b29a7b267cfa
Description
Summary:Viral hemorrhagic fevers (VHF) are acute zoonotic diseases that, early on, seem to cause platelet destruction or dysfunction. Here we present the four major ways viruses affect platelet development and function and new evidence of molecular factors that are preferentially induced by the more pathogenic members of the families Flaviviridae, Bunyaviridae, Arenaviridae, and Filoviridae. A systematic search was performed through the main medical electronic databases using as parameters all current findings concerning platelets in VHF. Additionally, the review contains information from conference proceedings.