PITTSBURGH (AP) - The University of Pittsburgh's Center for Vaccine Research is starting a $7.6 million study of rare but deadly diseases that might be used in bioterrorism.

The Pittsburgh Tribune-Review reports (http://bit.ly/1Rx1POe ) the Department of Defense-funded study could produce drugs to fight viruses mosquitoes carry.

Amy Hartman, the project's principal investigator, says they want to be prepared for either a natural outbreak or a man-made one.

The study will focus on several viruses that are most prevalent in horses, but can also infect humans. Officials say the fatality rate could be as high as 90 percent for those rare infections.

Hartman says little is known about the mechanisms of the diseases the viruses cause. She says researchers will study the viruses in animals and test vaccines that could be tested in humans.

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Information from: Pittsburgh Tribune-Review,

http://pghtrib.com