Tick-Borne Nairoviruses Use OTU Proteases to Evade Human Antiviral Signals

Summer is peak tick season, and with it comes familiar threats like Lyme disease and Rocky Mountain spotted fever. But scientists say another group of tick‑borne pathogens is quietly gaining ground: nairoviruses, a diverse family of negative‑sense RNA viruses carried by ticks across Asia, Europe, Africa—and now the western United States. Several nairoviruses can infect humans, causing high fevers, severe headaches, and, in some cases, organ dysfunction. One member of the family, Crimean‑Congo hemorrhagic fever virus (CCHFV), is often fatal and considered a global‑level threat.