SCI/TECH: Marburg Virus Outbreak, page 1

posted on Apr, 8 2005 @ 12:30 PM

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A fresh outbreak of the deadly Marburg virus in underway in Africa!

This is quite scary stuff and I'm wondering what more "surprises" await in the remote regions of the world. I was under the impression that the Ebola-like outbreaks are less frequent. Now, it looks like the epidemics come every few years:

www.cnn.com
Angola's death toll from the Marburg virus has climbed to 173 and four more countries have been placed on alert, as health officials struggle to contain the deadly virus, according to the World Health Organization Web site.

The worst outbreak of the virus previously recorded killed 123 people in neighboring Congo between 1998 and 2000. That also was the last known outbreak.

Like Ebola, which also has hit Africa, Marburg is a hemorrhagic fever. It spreads through contact with bodily fluids and can kill rapidly. There is no vaccine.

Please visit the link provided for the complete story.

Obviously, developing a vaccine for a virus is difficult business. I would also think that more research funding is needed to defeat these virulent strains - we are lucky all of this was contained to far. With the world wide air travel, this could have been much worse.

[edit on 8-4-2005 by Aelita]

[edit on 8-4-2005 by Aelita]

Bleys

posted on Apr, 8 2005 @ 12:51 PM

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It's frightening that they still don't have this contained. I remember reading a book called the Hot Zone years ago - great stuff on filoviruses. Marburg of the 4 known filoviruses is not as deadly as Zaire or Sudan (although still bad enough) and Reston is not transmissible to humans at present. A little site I found about these viruses - National Health museum it has an interview with Frederick Murphy is considered one world's foremost authorities on viruses.

B.

marg6043

posted on Apr, 8 2005 @ 01:00 PM

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This doesn't sound good at all, at least is not airborne, that will be tragic, as long as it has to be some kind of contact with an infected person it can be control.

How tragic that most of this virulent virus comes from about the same area.

MrOtis

posted on Apr, 13 2005 @ 03:49 PM

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The author of The Hot Zone, Richard Preston, wrote a piece for the New Yorker in '98 called The Bioweaponeers. He described the Russian program into developing a weaponized form of Marburg.

Considering the unusual facts of this case--the efficient transmission, the near 100% fatality rate, and the fact that it broke out among infants and young children--it is not far-fetched to consider the possibility that this outbreak is not a natural occurrence.

FredT

posted on Apr, 13 2005 @ 06:23 PM

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This story actually is already on ATSNN (Link below) The death toll is actually up to 210 and the WTO is warning that it will get worse:

Angolans die from Ebola-like bug Update: WHO: No end in sight Death Toll 210

MrOtis

posted on May, 21 2005 @ 10:05 AM

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Interview online with emerging diseases specialist Dr. Henry L. Niman about the Marburg outbreak, H5N1 in Vietnam, and the spread of a lab virus called WSN/33, created in 1940 from a variant of the 1918 Spanish flu, through Korean pigs.

P.I.D. Radio #7: Avian Flu and Marburg

P.I.D. Radio #8: Marburg and the WHO's response

P.I.D. Radio #11: WSN/33