Ebola

Question: What would you do if there was an outbreak of Ebola in the United States? Ebola Hemmorhagic Fever is one of the most deadly diseases on the planet. There are many stranes and Ebola-Ziare kills 90% of the people it affects. There is no cure, and the only way to keep yourself from getting it is to keep out of contact of other people.

Answer: Invest in a large plastic bubble. And book a flight to Australia, they have kangaroos there. Could be exciting.

Question: How exactly does the Immunoflouresence Detection for Ebola work? I need to know exactly how the immunoflouresence detection method for Ebola virus works. If ANYONE at all knows the answer, please respond. It's for a very important research paper that's due tomorrow.

Answer: A novel recombinant baculovirus which expresses Ebola virus (EBO) nucleoprotein (NP) under the control of the cytomegalovirus immediate-early promoter was constructed. HeLa cells abortively infected with the baculovirus expressed EBO NP, and this was used as an immunofluorescent (IF) antigen to detect EBO immunoglobulin G (IgG) antibody. This IF method has high efficacy in detecting EBO IgG antibody in clinical specimens, indicating its usefulness in the diagnosis of EBO infections and seroepidemiological studies.

Question: When was the last outbreak of Ebola virus and other viruses like it? I know there are outbreaks every once in a while of Ebola and other viruses like that in Africa. When was the last outbreak of Ebola and how severe was it? What about other viruses like it?

Answer: There was an outbreak of suspected Ebola in the Congo in June 2008. Turkey had an outbreal of Crimean-Congo hemorrahagic fever July 2008. In July 2008, the Netherlands reported a case of Marburg virus from a person who travelled to Uganda. Currently 3 people have died in S.Africa from an undiagnosed hemmorahagic fever, one person was from Zambia.

Question: How can Ebola virus be used in making immortalised cell lines? I read that Ebola virus is used in the research labs to make immortalised cell lines. I dont understand how Ebola virus can have such an influence--immortalising cell lines .can anyone explain Ebola virus was used in this for reasearch purposes to make immortalised lymphocyte lines.

Answer: The only thing I can imagine you are referring to is this: http://www.pnas.org/cgi/content/full/105/4/1129 , where scientists made immortal cell lines specifically for studying ebola, not using ebola. As I am sure you know, ebola is a pretty intense virus and you need very high biosaftely level facilities to study it (there are only a couple in the world). Since there are so few places equipped to do such research, progress on ebola was very slow. To combat this problem, the authors of the above paper created a new version of ebola that is not pathogenic and thus can be studied in normal laboratories. The way this was done was by removing a protein from the ebola genome that is required for its replication. Thus, if a cell is infected with this type of ebola, nothing will happen because it does not have the components necessary to replicate itself. Where the cell line comes in is that the researchers created an immortal cell line that contains the exact protein that the manipulated ebola strain lacks. Thus, when ebola infects these cells it will behave normally. Ebola infects these and only these special cells because they have been engineered to contain the missing protein. No cell in any normal living organism contains this protein and thus it cannot infect people which is what makes it safe. Metaphorically, normal ebola has both lock and key to infection whereas the engineered ebola only has the lock but not key and the cell line has the key where normal cells do not. Thus, only when the cell line and the mutant ebola are put together will there be lock and key. If this isn't what you think you read try and find the source if you can so we can take another look. Good luck and stay away from that ebola!

Question: How do people first get infected with Ebola? I know they get it from another person, but how does that other person get it? How do they catch the Ebola virus? How did it all start? Is it only monkeys or can it be other animals too?

Answer: Are you reading the Hot Zone? It starts from monkeys. Monkeys infected with the disease bite people and other monkeys and spread it.

Question: Whats are the advantages with ebola studies? What are the advantages of ebola studies in the US? I know that research in other countries but I have heard that there has been debates on wether or not to allow studies in the US.

Answer: Ebola could be introduced into the US for example by airline passengers. Knowing how to quickly identify the disease and respond to a threat might justify studies. Obviously, great precaution is necessary.

Question: What are the characteristics of the organism causing the Ebola Virus? What are the characteristics of the organism causing the Ebola Virus?

Answer: Ebola, what can I tell you about this dangerous viral disease of humans and nonhuman primates (monkeys etc)? Well I should know, it killed a medical colleague of mine in Africa a few years back. But on this occasion, I would leave it to the experts.

Question: What does Ebola do the RNA? And what causes the bleeding? I need a simple, yet not too simple, and not a graduate level explanation of what Ebola does to the RNA. I also would like to know what causes the bleeding. Is it anything involved with the clotting factors, or what?

Answer: Ebola is an RNA virus, meaning it uses RNA replication to synthesize itself. To the best of my knowledge the virus does not affect the body's RNA, but hijacks the cell's "machinery" to reproduce itself. As far as the bleeding - ebola is thought to cause small clots throughout the body. These clots use up the platelets and other clotting factors the blood has leaving the rest of the blood unable to coagulate, thus the hemorraghic bleeding.

Question: What Kind of job involves researching bacteria like marburg or ebola or something dangerous like that? 1)What kind of job has to do with researching bacteria like marburg or ebola or some kind of dangerous bacteria like that?2) Also if possible something like cleaning up radiation or something having to do with radiation LIKE that? well those sound ok but i was kinda looking for something like decontaminating radiated areas or something like that

Answer: An epidemiologist is someone who studies epidemics. He investigates the who, what and why an epidemic occurred. He studies what factors influences any particular epidemic and tries to prevent an outbreak. Of course, an epidemiologist is not just a virologist, he is more of a microbiologist who specializes in the highly infectious pathogens (it can be bacterias, parasites, fungi or viruses) that causes epidemics. An epidemiologist is a sociologist and a microbiologist, he studies the effects of a pathogen on a population instead of just one individual. 2. Radiation protection technicians measure and record radiation levels; in addition, they service and calibrate radiation protection instruments and equipment. They play a vital role in ensuring the safety of employees working in radiation areas, as well as the facility’s compliance with radiation requirements. The Skills Needed A radiation protection technician must be able to support the development of radiation protection instrumentation calibration procedures and instructions. In addition, the technician evaluates radiological survey results and establishes means for plant workers to limit the amount of radiation they receive. The Education/Experience Needed A high school diploma or GED is required, as well as two years of experience and on-the-job training and successful completion of the required training and examination.

Question: What are good websites for the Ebola Fever? I am currently working on a research paper over the Ebola Hemorrhagic Fever, and i'm having trouble finding good reliable sites with all the information on there that i would need to make a bibliography. Please help me out!

Answer: I would suggest the centers for disease control and prevention, it has good true info.

Question: Ebola? ........................................... What are symptoms, time span, and what happens with it? I'm just curious. I'm intrested in working for the CDC when I get older, so I think this stuff is interesting. Is it really the deadliest disease on earth that is not only in a lab, but in public as well? I would prefer medical answers, not some idiot trying to get a few good points for saying something like "Ebola Sucks".

Answer: You need to read the book "The Hot Zone" by Richard Preston. I am also interested in Ebola and other viruses and this book is excellent!!

Question: Can someone tell me what exactly Ebola Fever is? I researched about it but I don't really understand what it really is. I know the Ebola Virus causes it and I know all the symptoms and how it spreads. What does it do to do the body?

Answer: Ebola Fever is simply the diagnosis of a group of symptoms that are caused by the Ebola Virus. If you have researched the symptoms, the virus, and how it spreads, then you basically know what it is.

Question: Is it possible for another Ebola outbreak in the US? I know there was one in Reston, but it did not jump species. Are we at risk of a human ebola outbreak in the US and are we prepared for such a catastrophe?

Answer: ya your all gonna die, start buying stuff

Question: If a certain strain of ebola virus has been transmitted to the pigs, is it possible that humans be affected? one or more pig growers in the philippines are contaminated with ebola virus,i ask myself,it this situation will put every consumers in the philippines be in danger because most of the processed meat products are made from pork!

Answer: yea, just like the virus can mutate from primates to humans.

Question: what is the origin of the ebola virus? im doing a science project about viruses, and i picked the ebola virus. One thing i have to know about this virus is its origin. Please help me.

Answer: The origin of Ebola remains a mystery. It was detected in Zaire around twenty years ago. Current theories are that it comes form insects that live around monkeys. The first outbreaks occurred in the Ebola river in Congo.

Question: What are two different strains of Ebola? What are two different strains of Ebola?

Answer: The Ebola virus, which was first discovered in the 1970s, has at least two different strains that have been mapped so far and are characterised by their different mortality rates. The South Sudan strain, which usually hits in East Africa, has a mortality rate of around 50 percent but is the most contagious. The so-called Zaire strain of the virus - which normally occurs in the two Congos and Gabon - is the most lethal, with a mortality rate of 70-90 percent. This strain is however somewhat less contagious, meaning that outbreaks burn out quicker and normally leave a lower total death toll. There is an ongoing genetic screening at CDC laboratories of the Ebola virus causing the current southern Sudanese outbreak to establish whether it may represent a third Ebola strain. Observations in Sudan so far indicate that the suspected new strain has a mortality rate of between 25 and 30 percent.