VIOLIN: Vaccine Investigation and Online Information Network

Pathogen Page

Mumps virus

I. General Information

1. NCBI Taxonomy ID:

2. Disease:

Mumps

3. Introduction

Mumps virus is a member of the paramyxovirus family, closely related to parainfluenza viruses. It only has one serotype. Mumps is a disease of childhood, the highest incidence occurs in children between 5 - 9 years of age. The common symptoms include parotid inflammation (or parotitis), fever, headache, and orchitis. Mumps is vaccine-preventable, and one dose of mumps vaccine is about 80% effective against the disease (Hviid et al., 2008).

4. Microbial Pathogenesis

Mumps is acquired through inoculation and replication of the virus in the nasal or upper-respiratory-tract mucosa. Infection can remain localised to the respiratory tract.12 Transient plasma viraemia is probably frequent, occurs late in the incubation period, and leads to viral spread into organs. Infected mononuclear cells can also contribute to systemic viral spread.The parotids are the most commonly affected organs, but parotitis is not a primary or necessary step for mumps infection. The central nervous system (CNS), urinary tract, and genital organs can also be affected. Infection of the kidneys leads to viruria, which is present in most patients and lasts for 10–14 days. Plasma viremia seems to be restricted by the humoral immune response,16 and salivary secretion of the virus correlates inversely with the local production of virus-specific secretory IgA (Hviid et al., 2008).

5. Host Ranges and Animal Models

Mumps is a virus that only infects humans (Hviid et al., 2008).

6. Host Protective Immunity

Mumps as an illness is generally benign and self-resolving. Titres of neutralising antibody are related to clinical protection, but there is no surrogate immunological marker for protection (Hviid et al., 2008).

Loading Pathogen Genes...

Loading Host Genes...

Loading Vaccines...

Loading References...

Table of Contents