Abnormal Development - Rubella Virus

From Embryology
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Introduction

Rubella Virus, transmission electron micrograph (Image: CDC USA)

Rubella virus (Latin, rubella = little red), also known as "German Measles" (due to early citation in German medical literature), infection during pregnancy can cause congenital rubella syndrome (CRS) with serious malformations of the developing fetus. The type and degree of abnormality relates to the time of maternal infection.

Rubella peaked in 1964 and 1965, when 12.5 million cases were reported (USA). As a result, 20,000 babies were born with birth defects, 6,200 babies were stillborn, and an estimated 5,000 births were aborted, both naturally and assisted. At that time no treatment by vaccination existed and this only became available in 1969. The disease was dangerous because in children it was almost unnoticable and pregnant women often did not know that they had been exposed.

Children infected with rubella before birth (a condition known as congenital rubella) are at risk for the following: growth retardation; malformations of the heart, eyes, or brain; deafness; and liver, spleen, and bone marrow problems.

The complete genomic sequence (Dominguez etal., 1990) of Rubella is now known. Rubella is a 9755 bp single stranded RNA positive-strand virus with no DNA stage (Togaviridae; Rubivirus) encoding nonstructural protein, capsid protein, glycoproteins E1 and E2. (More? Genome)

Environmental Links: Introduction | low folic acid | iodine deficiency | Nutrition | Drugs | Australian Drug Categories | USA Drug Categories | thalidomide | herbal drugs | Illegal Drugs | smoking | Fetal Alcohol Syndrome | TORCH | viral infection | bacterial infection | fungal infection | zoonotic infection | toxoplasmosis | Malaria | maternal diabetes | maternal hypertension | maternal hyperthermia | Maternal Inflammation | Maternal Obesity | hypoxia | biological toxins | chemicals | heavy metals | air pollution | radiation | Prenatal Diagnosis | Neonatal Diagnosis | International Classification of Diseases | Fetal Origins Hypothesis

Some Recent Findings

  • Controlling rubella and preventing congenital rubella syndrome – global progress, 2009 PMID20949700 "In 2009, a total of 121,344 rubella cases were reported to WHO from 167 countries, a 82% decrease from 2000"

References


Reviews

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Articles

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Search Pubmed

Search Pubmed: Rubella Virus | Congenital Rubella Syndrome

External Links

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Cite this page: Hill, M.A. (2024, May 3) Embryology Abnormal Development - Rubella Virus. Retrieved from https://embryology.med.unsw.edu.au/embryology/index.php/Abnormal_Development_-_Rubella_Virus

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© Dr Mark Hill 2024, UNSW Embryology ISBN: 978 0 7334 2609 4 - UNSW CRICOS Provider Code No. 00098G
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