Bourbon virus | |
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Electron micrograph of the spherical form of Bourbon virus (scale bar: 100 nm) | |
Virus classification ![]() | |
(unranked): | Virus |
Realm: | Riboviria |
Kingdom: | Orthornavirae |
Phylum: | Negarnaviricota |
Class: | Insthoviricetes |
Order: | Articulavirales |
Family: | Orthomyxoviridae |
Genus: | Thogotovirus |
Virus: | Bourbon virus
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Bourbon virus is an RNA virus in the genus Thogotovirus of the family Orthomyxoviridae, which is similar to Dhori virus and Batken virus. It was first identified in 2014 in a man from Bourbon County, Kansas, United States, who died after being bitten by ticks. The case is the eighth report of human disease associated with a thogotovirus globally, and the first in the Western hemisphere. As of May 2015, a case was discovered in Stillwater, Oklahoma (the patient fully recovered), and relatively little is known about the virus. No specific treatment or vaccine is available. The virus is suspected to be transmitted by ticks or insects, and avoidance of bites is recommended to reduce risk of infection. In June 2017 a 58-year-old female Missouri State Park employee died from an infection of the Bourbon virus after it had been misdiagnosed for a significant period of time.[1]