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Chikungunya fever (CHIKF) is an arbovirus disease caused by chikungunya virus (CHIKV), an alphavirus of Togaviridae family. Transmission follows a human-mosquito-human cycle starting with a mosquito bite. Subsequently, symptoms develop after 2–6 days of incubation, including high fever and severe arthralgia. The disease is self-limiting and usually resolve within 2 weeks. However, chronic disease can last up to several years with persistent polyarthralgia. Overlapping symptoms and common vector with dengue and malaria present many challenges for diagnosis and treatment of this disease. CHIKF was reported in India in 1963 for the first time. After a period of quiescence lasting up to 32 years, CHIKV re-emerged in India in 2005. Currently, every part of the country has become endemic for the disease with outbreaks resulting in huge economic and productivity losses. Several mutations have been identified in circulating strains of the virus resulting in better adaptations or increased fitness in the vector(s), effective transmission, and disease severity. CHIKV evolution has been a significant driver of epidemics in India, hence, the need to focus on proper surveillance, and implementation of prevention and control measure in the country. Presently, there are no licensed vaccines or antivirals available; however, India has initiated several efforts in this direction including traditional medicines. In this review, we present the current status of CHIKF in India. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Human metapneumovirus (HMPV) is a common respiratory pathogen that causes respiratory tract infections. In India, HMPV has been identified as one of the leading causes of morbidity and mortality in infants and young children with respiratory tract infections. The most reported sublineages of HMPV in India are B1, B2, A2b and A2c., Objective: A retrospective study was conducted to determine the circulating genotypes of HMPV among SARI cases from January 2016 to December 2018., Materials and Methods: Positive throat swab samples were confirmed with real-time RT-PCR. Subsequently, these samples were analysed using semi-nested conventional RT-PCR targeting the G gene, followed by sequencing and phylogenetic analysis. Clinical data analysis was also performed using SPSS 15.0 software., Results: All 20 samples from the SARI cases were classified under the A2c sublineage of HMPV. Phylogenetic analysis indicated that these strains were genetically related to those circulating in Japan, China, and Croatia. Among the samples, ten showed 111-nucleotide duplications, while the other ten had 180-nucleotide duplications., Conclusion: Clinical analysis showed that four cases had coinfections with other pathogens. Our extensive analysis of patient samples determined that HMPV, especially the A2c genotype, significantly contributed to SARI cases within our study population, which signifies the importance of considering HMPV as a probable aetiological agent when investigating SARI outbreaks.