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According to the World Health Organization (WHO), rabies causes greater than 59,000 deaths every year in over 150 countries as of 2017. A rapid and reliable diagnostic test for rabies is critical for prophylaxis considerations in humans bitten by animals as well as for basic surveillance and animal rabies control programs. The World Organization of Animal Health (OIE) and WHO Expert Committee on Rabies recently approved the direct rapid immunohistochemical test (DRIT) for rabies diagnostics.

Flaviviruses such as Zika virus, dengue virus, West Nile virus, yellow fever virus, and Japanese encephalitis virus cause widespread illness and death throughout the world. Typically, flaviviruses get transmitted through the bite of infected mosquitoes and ticks.

CDC researchers have developed technology that consists of a simple and inexpensive technique for creating fluorescent labeled primers for nucleic acid amplification. Fluorescent chemical-labeled probes and primers are extensively used in clinical and research laboratories for rapid, real-time detection and identification of microbes and genetic sequences. During nucleic acid amplification, the "UniFluor" primer is incorporated into newly synthesized double stranded DNA.

CDC scientists have developed a rapid and cost-efficient method for generating fluorescently labeled primers for PCR and real-time PCR. At present, fluorescent primers are useful for detecting and identifying microbes and specific nucleic acid sequences, amplifying nucleic acids for pyro-sequencing, determining the levels of gene expression, and many other uses. However, problems exist with current techniques used to create fluorescent primers. For one, labeling is not one hundred percent efficient, leading to inaccurate results.

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration and World Health Organization (WHO) approved the antiretroviral drug emtricitabine (FTC)/ tenofovir disoproxil fumurate (TDF) combination for HIV pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) in high risk populations. Efficacy of PrEP depends strongly on adherence to taking the FTC/TDF pill daily. In the US, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) estimates that 1.2 million Americans will benefit from PrEP. FTC is also a key component of antiretroviral therapy (ART) regimens of HIV-infected persons and significantly associated with adherence.

Zika virus infection during pregnancy can cause microcephaly and other severe birth defects. The CDC Zika MAC-ELISA (IgM antibody capture enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay) currently used for diagnosis detects antibodies produced to fight a Zika virus infection. However, reactivity of flavivirus antibodies (from exposure to other mosquito-borne infections such as dengue or West Nile virus) can complicate the interpretation of these results.

According to 2010-2014 World Health Organization (WHO) research, dog-transmitted human rabies was present or suspected in 150 countries and territories worldwide. Domestic dogs were the most common reservoir of the rabies virus in these countries, and more than 99% of human deaths were caused by dog-transmitted rabies. Rabies is 100% preventable in dogs with appropriate administration of vaccines.

Syphilis is a sexually transmitted disease (STD) that remains a global health threat. Syphilis rates in the United States have also been increasing. Left untreated, syphilis infection can span decades and have serious complications including blindness, dementia and paralysis. Syphilis in pregnancy causes prematurity, low birthweight, neonatal death, and infections in newborns. Improvements in syphilis detection are needed to facilitate early diagnosis of active infections and monitor treatment with antibiotics.

Syphilis, a genital ulcerative disease caused by the bacterium Treponema pallidum, is associated with significant complications if left untreated. Syphilis rates in the United States have been increasing.

Lyssaviruses are single-stranded RNA viruses that cause rabies and rabies-like diseases in mammals. According to the World Health Organization, human rabies caused by the classical rabies virus continues to be almost 100% fatal once clinical symptoms of rabies appear, with no specific treatment available anywhere in the world.