over time. An example of the evolution of virulence in emerging virus is the case of myxomatosis in rabbits. The release of wild European rabbits in 1859 into Victoria, Australia for sport resulted in a rabbit plague. In order to curb with rabbit overpopulation, myxoma virus, a lethal species-specific poxvirus responsible for myxomatosis in rabbits, was deliberately released in South Australia in 1950. This led to a 90% decrease in rabbit populations, and the disease became endemic in a span of five years. Significantly, severely attenuated strains of the myxoma virus were detected in merely 2 years of its release, and genetic resistance in rabbits emerged within seven years. See also Virology Glossary of virology Pathogen Pathogenesis List of human diseases associated with infectious pathogens References Virology