FREE EDUCATION TO YOU ALL Ebola hemorrhagic fever (Ebola HF) is one of numerous Viral HemorrhagicFevers. It is a severe, often fatal disease in humans and nonhuman primates (such as monkeys, gorillas, and chimpanzees).Ebola HF is caused by infection with a virus of the familyFiloviridae,genusEbolavirus. When infection occurs,symptomsusually begin abruptly. The firstEbolavirusspecies was discoveredin 1976 in what is now the Democratic Republic of the Congo near the Ebola River. Since then, outbreaks have appeared sporadically.There are five identified subspecies ofEbolavirus. Four of the five have caused disease in humans: Ebola virus (Zaire ebolavirus); Sudan virus (Sudanebolavirus); Taï Forest virus (Taï Forest ebolavirus, formerlyCôte d’Ivoire ebolavirus); and Bundibugyo virus (Bundibugyo ebolavirus). The fifth, Reston virus (Reston ebolavirus),has caused disease in nonhuman primates, but not in humans.The natural reservoir host of ebolaviruses remains unknown. However, on the basis of available evidence and the nature of similar viruses, researchers believe that the virus is zoonotic (animal-borne) with bats being the most likely reservoir. Four of the five subtypes occur in an animal host native to Africa.A host of similar species is probably associated with Reston virus, which was isolated from infected cynomolgous monkeys imported to the United States and Italy from the Philippines. Severalworkers in the Philippines and in US holding facility outbreaks became infected with the virus, but did not become ill.
Posted on: Fri, 29 Aug 2014 08:03:29 +0000
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