Medical Science: Flavivirus Research Question in Emirates Study

This assignment presents a research question in medical science focusing on the phylogenetic characteristics of flavivirus extracted from patients suffering from febrile illness in the Emirates. The research aims to identify detected viral species and characterize their phylogenetic relationships, addressing the need for understanding and controlling potential outbreaks. The study is justified based on the FINER criteria, emphasizing feasibility, interest, novelty, ethical considerations, and relevance to the field. The hypothesis posits that novel flavivirus samples will exhibit distinct phylogenetic characteristics. The research aims to screen for novel flaviviruses, identify viral species, and characterize their sequences, contributing to the existing knowledge of flavivirus and its implications for public health. References to relevant studies are included to support the research question and its significance.

Running head: MEDICAL SCIENCE
Medical Science
Name of student:
Name of university:
Author note:

1
MEDICAL SCEINCE
The research question that would be noteworthy in the field of medical science is “What
are the phylogenetic characteristics of detected viral sequences extracted from novel
circulating flaviviruses samples (epidemic and newly introduced) of patients suffering from
febrile illness in Emirates”?
The primary question to be addressed is-
 What are the detected viral species of flavivirus from patients suffering from febrile
illness in emirates?
The secondary questions to be addressed are-
 What are the novel characteristics of flavivirus species in Saudi Arabia?
 What are the phylogenetic characteristics of the identified sequences?
The research would focus on screening for a novel or newly introduced flavivirus in
samples collected from patients in Emirates. In addition, detected viral species are to be
identified and the sequences are to be phylogenetically characterized.
The research question is based on the FINER (Feasible Interesting Novel Ethical
Relevant) criteria for a good research question. The justification for the same is as follows.
The research question is feasible since the study can be conducted with a sample
population of 500 individuals who live in the Emirates and have been diagnosed with flavivirus.
Screening can be done retrospectively for flavirus in samples from patients who suffer febrile
illness. The study would be manageable in scope as the study would be conducted for over a
period of three years.
A research question is to be intriguing for the researcher and the medical science field.
The present research question would be interesting, as key insights would be gained into how
viral febrile illness is characterized. Clinical manifestations of the illness make it impossible to
understand the etiological agents. The genus Flavirus has at least 70 tentative and known viruses.
Half of these are known to be pathogenic for human diseases such as hemorrhagic fever and
encephalitis. In Saudi Arabia, it has been indicated that at least 5 vector-borne flaviviruses are
presently in circulation that have caused sporadic or endemic infections. There is a need of
characterizing the viruses and the present research would be directed with this objective
(Alshammari et al., 2018).
New findings generated from a research question infers it the character of being novel.
Most of the research available on flavivirus is based on techniques, which have been pointed out
to be outdated. These techniques are reliant on the use of traditional RT-PCR format and nested
PCR, that can impair the specificity and sensitivity of the tests due to multiple concerns. The
proposed study would screen for potential circulation and/or introduction of previously
uncharacterized or new flavivirus like ZIKAV. In addition, it would also help in understanding

2
MEDICAL SCEINCE
the usability of pan-flavivirus assay (single-step universal flaviviruses real-time RT- PCR) (Al-
Tawfiq & Memish, 2017).
The research on flavivirus needs to consider ethical principles of primary research carried
out with human participants. The study would need approval from the Ethics Review Board.
Research conducted in the medical science field has to have high relevancy to the need of
scientific knowledge on a certain domain. In the present case, the proposed research has high
relevancy to the need of scientific knowledge about flavivirus characterization. Flavivirus is a
global health concern at present and phylogenetic characterization of the virus would help in
understanding the effective control measures for the disease. According to present research,
prospective and continuous surveillance for flavivirus is required in the Saudi Arabia. Based on
the research findings scientists can aid in development of strategies to control outbreaks of
flavivirus infections (Al‐Saeed et al., 2017).
The hypothesis of the study is that novel circulating flaviviruse samples of patients
suffering from febrile illness in Emirates would have distinct phylogenetic characteristics which
would be novel.
The aims of the study are as follows-
 To screen for a novel or newly introduced flaviviruses to Emirates in samples collected
from patients with undiagnosed acute viral febrile illnesses
 To identify the detected viral species
 To phylogenetically characterize identified sequences

3
MEDICAL SCEINCE
References
Al‐Saeed, M. S., El‐Kafrawy, S. A., Farraj, S. A., Al‐Subhi, T. L., Othman, N. A., Alsultan,
A., ... & Azhar, E. I. (2017). Phylogenetic characterization of circulating Dengue and
Alkhumra Hemorrhagic Fever viruses in western Saudi Arabia and lack of evidence of
Zika virus in the region: A retrospective study, 2010‐2015. Journal of medical
virology, 89(8), 1339-1346.
Alshammari, S. A., Alamri, Y. S., Rabhan, F. S., Alabdullah, A. A., Alsanie, N. S., Almarshad,
F. A., & Alhaqbani, A. N. (2018). Overview of Dengue and Zika virus similarity, what
can we learn from the Saudi experience with dengue fever?. International Journal of
Health Sciences, 12(1).
Al-Tawfiq, J. A., & Memish, Z. A. (2017). Alkhurma hemorrhagic fever virus. Microbes and
infection, 19(6), 305-310.