Insight into the Tropism of Dengue Virus in Humans

Abstract

In tropical and subtropical zones, arboviruses are among the major threats to human life, affecting a large number of populations with serious diseases. Worldwide, over three hundred million people are infected with dengue virus (DENV) every year as per the World Health Organization (WHO). DENV-mediated disease severity ranges from a mild fever to hemorrhagic fever and shock syndrome. Patients suffering from severe infection might experience multi-organ failure, cardiomyopathy and even encephalopathy, further complicating the disease pathogenesis. In life-threatening cases, DENV has been reported to affect almost all organs of the human body. In this review, we discuss the organ tropism of DENV in humans in depth as detected in various autopsy studies. Keeping in mind the fact that there is currently no DENV-specific antiviral, it is of utmost importance to achieve a vivid picture of the susceptible cells in humans which might help in designing antivirals against DENV, especially targeting those tissues in which infection might lead to life-threatening conditions.