Significant zoonotic diseases have appeared with increasing frequency in recent years. At a symposium held in Galveston, Texas, in March 2004, many outstanding virologists and others presented papers under the broad theme of "emergence". The intent was to elucidate the diseases themselves, the mechanisms by which they have emerged, the publication perception and response to the diseases, and the possibility of prevention or prediction. The papers in this book summarize the talks of this meeting. Among the many timely papers are those by Nobel Prize winner Peter Doherty, influenza epidemiologists Robert Webster and Jeffery Taubenberger, and important contributions by Neal Nathanson, Esteban Domingo, Barry Beaty, David Walker, James Hughes, and others of world expertise.

In the past half century, deadly disease outbreaks caused by novel viruses of animal origin - Nipah virus in Malaysia, Hendra virus in Australia, Hantavirus in the United States, Ebola virus in Africa, along with HIV (human immunodeficiency virus), several influenza subtypes, and the SARS (sudden acute respiratory syndrome) and MERS (Middle East respiratory syndrome) coronaviruses - have underscored the urgency of understanding factors influencing viral disease emergence and spread. Emerging Viral Diseases is the summary of a public workshop hosted in March 2014 to examine factors driving the appearance, establishment, and spread of emerging, re-emerging and novel viral diseases; the global health and economic impacts of recently emerging and novel viral diseases in humans; and the scientific and policy approaches to improving domestic and international capacity to detect and respond to global outbreaks of infectious disease. This report is a record of the presentations and discussion of the event.

Hantaviruses are found world-wide and are associated with two severe disease syndromes, hemorrhagic fever and hantavirus pulmonary syndrome. The recent studies in this volume provide a basis for understanding the high human pathogenicity of theses viruses and their continued maintenance and transmission within rodent populations.

Vector-borne infectious diseases, such as malaria, dengue fever, yellow fever, and plague, cause a significant fraction of the global infectious disease burden; indeed, nearly half of the world's population is infected with at least one type of vector-borne pathogen (CIESIN, 2007; WHO, 2004a). Vector-borne plant and animal diseases, including several newly recognized pathogens, reduce agricultural productivity and disrupt ecosystems throughout the world. These diseases profoundly restrict socioeconomic status and development in countries with the highest rates of infection, many of which are located in the tropics and subtropics. Although this workshop summary provides an account of the individual presentations, it also reflects an important aspect of the Forum philosophy. The workshop functions as a dialogue among representatives from different sectors and allows them to present their beliefs about which areas may merit further attention. These proceedings summarize only the statements of participants in the workshop and are not intended to be an exhaustive exploration of the subject matter or a representation of consensus evaluation. Vector-Borne Diseases : Understanding the Environmental, Human Health, and Ecological Connections, Workshop Summary (Forum on Microbial Threats) summarizes this workshop.