25 Amazing and Interesting Facts about Ebola Virus | Amazing Facts 4U
- Ebola is the name used for describing Ebola Virus Disease or EVD. It was previously known as Ebola Hemorrhagic Fever.
- The term ‘hemorrhagic’ refers to bleeding. There are other types of hemorrhagic fever such as Dengue fever, Lassa fever, Yellow fever, and Marburg fever.
- Viruses can cause fever associated with bleeding. Besides Ebola other viral hemorrhagic fevers (VHF) are Dengue fever, Lassa fever, Yellow fever, and Marburg fever.
- Ebola is caused by one of 5 different species of Ebola virus. They all infect humans except one which infects non-human primates.
- So far Ebola viruses have been restricted to some African countries.
- The first-ever recorded outbreak was in 1976 close to a river named Ebola which is now a part of the Democratic Republic of the Congo. Since then several other EVD outbreaks have been recorded with 2014 being the worst.
- The amazing fact is EVD is not spread through food, water, or air. It is believed that these viruses are borne and spread by animals.
- Bats are the most likely natural reservoir for the Ebola virus. In fact, fruit bats are considered a delicacy in Africa.
- Direct contact with infected primates like monkeys and apes and even direct contact with fruit bats can lead to transmission of this virus.
- Human to human transmission of the Ebola virus is by direct contact with bodily fluids of an Ebola-infected person. Bodily fluids can include breast milk, vomit, semen, urine, saliva, feces, blood, etc. The virus can also be transmitted through infected syringes and needles.
- Even after a person has recovered completely from EVD, the Ebola virus is found to stay in semen for a period of up to 3 months.
- Amazingly scientists have found no evidence of mosquitoes or even other insects transmitting the virus into humans.
- EVD becomes contagious only after the symptoms of the disease appear generally within 8 to 10 days.
- The symptoms of EVD include unexplained bruising and bleeding, high fever, stomach pain, severe headache, vomiting, fatigue, diarrhea, weakness and muscle pain, rash, sore throat, difficulty swallowing or breathing, etc.
- There is no known cure or vaccine for the Ebola virus. The treatment is only supportive including balancing body fluids, maintaining blood pressure, maintaining the body’s oxygen levels, and treatment for complications.
- EVD is diagnosed by a highly specialized blood test.
- EVD is extremely dangerous and has a fatality rate of 60%.
- In fact, a person can die within 6 days after symptoms appear.
- The Ebola virus, however, infects the dendritic cells first and rendering them defective which fails to inform the T lymphocytes and the T cells simply don’t respond to the infection. Because the T cells fail to get activated, the antibodies that depend on their activation also fail to fight the Ebola virus thus promoting Ebola replication.
- Once inside the body, the virus travels through the blood to different parts of the body. Macrophages a type of immune cells that get infected with Ebola releasing a type of protein that leads to coagulation in different parts of the body. The infected macrophages also release other types of proteins along with nitric oxide that is responsible for damaging the linings of the blood vessels which start leaking, leading to hemorrhages.
- The Ebola virus also destroys those liver cells that are responsible for producing proteins that are required for coagulating the blood.
- Ebola virus also destroys cells in gastrointestinal tracts leading to diarrhea and dehydration.
- Ebola virus also travels to adrenal glands and damages cells that control blood pressure leading to complete collapse of the circulatory system.
- The African countries that saw Ebola outbreaks include the Democratic Republic of the Congo (Zaire), South Sudan, Gabon, Ivory Coast, Republic of the Congo & Uganda.
- People who manage to recover from this deadly disease end up developing antibodies that last for 10 years making them immune to the virus for this period.
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