Jump to content
Join the Unexplained Mysteries community today! It's free and setting up an account only takes a moment.
- Sign In or Create Account -

Could Ebola now be airborne?


sean6

Recommended Posts

Could Ebola now be airborne? New research shows lethal virus can be spread from pigs to monkeys without contact

Fears are growing that the most lethal form of the Ebola virus can mutate into an airborne pathogen, making the spread of the terrifying disease more difficult to check.

It was previously thought the untreatable virus, which causes massive internal bleeding and multiple organ failure, could only be transmitted through contact with infected blood.

But now Canadian researchers have carried out experiments showing how monkeys can catch the deadly disease from infected pigs without coming into direct contact.

http://www.dailymail...ys-contact.html

http://www.bbc.co.uk...onment-20341423

Edited by sean6
Link to comment
Share on other sites

 

A shift that causes such a deadly scourge to be easily transmissible is the type of scenario that keeps the pros up at night. When it happens the herd will be greatly thinned. Imagine if millions in Western democracies died in a few months. The disruption to the economy, food chains and the general social upheaval. Bad news but totally predictable at some point.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Its airborne but not for long. You have to be in pretty close proximity to an infected animal or person to catch it. Still this is alarming news but I wonder if its just now becoming airborne or has it always been and just now being discovered.

  • Like 2
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Its airborne but not for long. You have to be in pretty close proximity to an infected animal or person to catch it. Still this is alarming news but I wonder if its just now becoming airborne or has it always been and just now being discovered.

Well that it's airborne at all is not good. Fact is, those that can sustain being airborne the longest within the virus population will now be the "evolved" survivors and the next generation will be borne from them, so it will eventually become airborne for longer periods and greater distances if enough of the virus survives the evolutionary leaps to "repopulate" new hosts each time.

Edited by libstaK
  • Like 2
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Its airborne but not for long. You have to be in pretty close proximity to an infected animal or person to catch it. Still this is alarming news but I wonder if its just now becoming airborne or has it always been and just now being discovered.

I just heard a radio interview with the discoverer. Yes, it's probably always been airborne (just over short distances).

  • Like 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

A shift that causes such a deadly scourge to be easily transmissible is the type of scenario that keeps the pros up at night. When it happens the herd will be greatly thinned. Imagine if millions in Western democracies died in a few months. The disruption to the economy, food chains and the general social upheaval. Bad news but totally predictable at some point.

If something like this were to happen (which it wouldn't), I don't think ebola would be the cause. Even in catastrophic epidemics before the advent of modern medicine, like the Black Death, a sizable proportion of the population will resist disease due to genetic factors that render them less susceptible, or even not susceptible at all.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Create an account or sign in to comment

You need to be a member in order to leave a comment

Create an account

Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!

Register a new account

Sign in

Already have an account? Sign in here.

Sign In Now
  • Recently Browsing   0 members

    • No registered users viewing this page.