Introduction: Attention getter: The most deadly killers on this earth are too small to see with the naked eye. These microscopic predators are viruses. Some viruses have no cure or not even a simple treatment. The unfortunate ones lay on their deathbed, crying out for mercy or pray for a miracle to happen. Their bodies slowly deteriorate and eventually die. The Ebola Virus is held responsible for the lives of thousands of people. Audience motivation: The Ebola virus is the T-Rex of microbes. I hope you will enjoy and may be frightened on what I’m about to tell you.
Establish credibility: I want to work in the health field, so I’m always curious and want to learn about new health topics. Preview: I will go over four interesting main points, which are how it spreads and symptoms, the different strains and transmission, the treatments, and hope. {Transition} Let’s start with how the Ebola virus spreads and the symptoms. BODY I. The Ebola virus attacks cells the same way all viruses do. A. It attaches itself to the cell, inserts its RNA into the host cell, and begins to multiply until the cell bursts open and thousands more of the virus spreads into the host, attacking even more cells. B.
This massive reproduction normally results in massive hemorrhage through the body which drastically depletes the proteins used for clotting and in most cases death of the host (Smith, 2006). C. Symptoms normally include a fever, headache, joint and muscle aches, sore throat, and weakness which leads to diarrhea, vomiting, and stomach pain (CDC, 2012). 1. All these symptoms all come quickly and since these symptoms are similar to any common virus such as the Flu or common cold it is hard to diagnose Ebola right away. 2. As the virus continues to attack the cells and multiply the symptoms get worse like bleeding from the eyes, ears, and nose.
Start to vomit blood because your stomach starts to fill up with blood, and eyes start to swell. 3. By the fifth day, if the host is still alive, the host will develop a rash and the skin will begin to blister and peel, much like a sunburn (Smith, 2006). 4. Patients usually die of shock due to respiratory failure, likely as a result of massive bleeding, including bleeding into the lungs. [Transition] Those are the symptoms, lets talk about the different strains and transmission. II. Your chances of survival depend on the strain of Ebola you contract. There are four subtypes of the Ebola strain. Ranked from most lethal to nonlethal A.
Ebola Zaire strain, first case ever reported was in Zaire, Africa in 1976. Infected 318 people and killed 280 of them giving it a 88% fatality rate. B. Ebola Sudan, first reported in Sudan, 1976, infected 284 people, killing 151 of them giving it a fatality rate of about 53%. C. The Budibugyo strain has only one reported outbreak in 2007, infected 131 people, killing 42 of them giving it a 37% fatality rate. D. One of the most interesting cases is the Reston strain. 1. In 1989, the first report was here in America at a research facility in Reston, Virginia, in a group of lab monkeys from the Philippines. This strain did not infect any humans.
However, it did nearly kill all of the test monkeys in the holding area the virus was located in. 2. It seemed on the first observation that this strain was able to spread from host to host through the air which makes it very significant because if this strain can do that ; then perhaps one of the more lethal strains such as Ebola Zaire may adapt to do that as well (CDC,2012). E. For the more lethal strains, transmission from host to host is a little more difficult. 1. These strains usually spread from person to person through contact with blood or any other bodily secretions from an infected individual.
2. People also come in contact with the virus by using needles or syringes used by several people. This has happened in a couple of out breaks in Africa because of under supplied hospitals. 3. Its tough to say how the first person actually contracted the virus in the first place because the reservoir or natural habitat of the virus is still unknown to scientist so no one knows exactly how an outbreak happens. [Transition] Now that we know how fatal the Ebola virus is, lets hope there is a treatment. III. Africa so far is the only place that we know plays home to the Ebola virus.
Being one of the largest land masses on the planet and looking for one of the smallest micro organisms to boot becomes very difficult. A. Not knowing the Ebola virus’s natural habitat makes it very difficult to prevent outbreaks and even treat the virus. 1. Since the natural reservoir of the virus is still unknown prevention is nearly impossible though a few primary prevention measures are in place (Heterogenious, 2009). B. Why don’t we just make a vaccine for the Ebola virus? It has been thought of but is just too dangerous. 1. The most common form of vaccine made today is a live attenuated vaccine or a killed vaccine.
A live attenuated vaccine allows the virus to replicate in the human body but has been changed so that is does not create illness. This technique would not go well for the recipient with the nature of this virus. 2. The Ebola virus is an RNA virus which means that an attenuated vaccine of the virus could mutate and become lethal (Smith,2006). [Transition] Even though it seems to be a dead end in trying to make vaccines there is hope. VI. A small Canadian bio tech, known as Protiva Corp. , with combined efforts from Tekmira, may have come up with a viable cure for the Ebola virus. A.
Their studies have shown that their RNA interferon with a lipid base delivery system had stopped the Ebola virus completely in lab animals. 1. RNA is the basic blueprint of life and has the ability to turn certain genes on or off; in this case the gene in the Ebola virus that allows it to multiply. B. Tekmira developed the lipid based delivery system to avoid the problem of the host immune system attacking and destroying the RNA interferon before it could get to where it needs to go. 1. In their studies, the monkeys and guinea pigs showed a survival rate increase form 20% to 100% in all test subjects.
2. The U. S. Medical Research Institute of Infectious Disease funded these studies, however, getting funded for non-primate trials is ethically tricky and a lot more expensive (Mccullough, 2010). V. In conclusion , the Ebola virus attacks the host, giving the host horrific symptoms. The Ebola virus will continue to sweep the African landscape taking lives then vanish like a deadly assassin back into the micro primordial world from where it hides. There is hope for the future in finding a vaccine of some kind available for people with the help of Tekmira and Protiva Corp.