By Adam Spofford
Blue Science
630s
Ebola virus is a complex virus that destroys
the walls of arteries and some other connective
tissue.
There are five known types: Zaire Ebola
virus, with the highest fatality rate at 90%, Sudan
Ebola virus, with nobody knowing what transmitted
it to humans, Reston Ebola virus, from crab-eating
macaques, Côte d’Ivore Ebola virus, with only one
human case, and Bundibugyo Ebola virus, with only
one outbreak.
There is also some discussion about what
actually kills you. Some people think the stomach
acid falls out your stomach, others say that you
internally bleed to death. I personally think it has
something to do with your brain.
There are a few symptoms of the
Ebola virus. They include fever,
malaise, muscle pain, and the
inflammation of the larynx (voice
box). Also, after six days of
vomiting and bloody diarrhea,
there will be some Maculopapular
rash and bleeding at body orifices.
The incubation period is also five
to eighteen days.
A full list is: abdominal pain, fever,
bleeding from orifices, headache, bloody
vomit, Maculopapular
rash, joint and muscle pain, inflammation
of the pharynx, coagulopathy , chest pain,
central nervous system involvement (rare),
dry and sore throat, hemorrhagic diathesis,
hiccups, non-bloody diarrhea, and
vomiting. You seriously do NOT want to
get this disease.
Ebola is caused by the Ebola
virus. It can be transmitted by
bodily fluids, and you can catch
it from its carrier (unknown) by
merely brushing it. In some
cases, it was caused by reusing
dirty hospital needles. Scientists
still don’t know what the Ebola
carrier is.
The currently known way of transmitting Ebola is through
bodily fluids. And with nasty symptoms such as bloody
vomit and orifice bleeding, it is pretty darn easy to
transmit it during the symptoms period. It is often
mistaken for malaria, typhoid fever, dysentery, or
influenza. To prevent it, if you seem to have any of these
diseases, tell your doctor to check if it is Ebola. Before
scientists studied it in depth, there were vaccines for
Ebola, but they have a six-month work period and are
therefore impractical for an epidemic. However, in 2008
they completed a short-working vaccine. To prevent
getting the virus, never touch used hospital tools or an
extreme amount of sheep, cow, or goat blood (such as a
brain as a hands-on science class activity).
30,000 creatures were tested and not a one had a trace of
ebolavirus. But strangely, the decaying carcasses had massive
amounts. Personally, I think it has something to do with
omnivores that don’t hunt because they would be able to
contaminate the carcasses. Bats are considered the most
likely carrier.
Ebola in bat lung
There is no standard treatment for Ebola
hemorrhagic fever. It is mainly
supportive and is basically replacing
bodily fluids, especially water and blood.
And really, all insurance covers is the
hole in the floor from the stomach acid.
The only possible cure was Morpholino
antisense drugs, until recently. There
have been some recent experiments on
monkeys (because of their resemblance
to humans) and Stable Nucleic Acid
Lipid Particles provide “complete
protection”.
•www.medterms.com/script/main/art.asp?articlekey=6490 (transmit, epidemiology,
treatments)
•emedicine.medscape.com/article/216288-overview (symptoms)
•http://cdc.gov/ncidod/dvrd/spb/mnpages/dispages/Fact_Sheets/Ebola_Fact_Boo
klet.pdf (symptoms, causes, transmit, treatments)