Other Definitions
marburg virus (dict)
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Marburg VirusThe Marburg virus is the causative agent of Marburg hemorrhagic fever, with known outbreaks beginning in 1967, 1975, 1980, 1987, 1998, 2004 and 2005. http://www.cdc.gov/ncidod/dvrd/spb/mnpages/dispages/marburg.htm Both the disease and virus are related to Ebola and originate in a similar area (Uganda and western Kenya). Its source is a zoonosis of unknown origin. The viral structure is typical of filoviruses, with long threadlike particles which have a consistent diameter but vary greatly in length from an average of 800 nanometres up to 14,000 nm, with peak infectious activity at about 790 nm. Virions (viral particles) contain seven known structural proteins. While nearly identical to Ebola virus in structure, Marburg virus is antigenically distinct from Ebola virus — in other words, it produces different antibodies in infected organisms. It was the first filovirus to be identified. This virus was first documented in 1967, when 37 people became ill in the German town of Marburg, after which it is named (as well as in Frankfurt am Main and the then Yugoslavian city of Belgrade). It was caused by infectious, African monkeys (grivets Cercopithecus aethiops) from Uganda used in developing polio vaccines. The monkeys were imported by the Behringwerke, a Marburg company founded by the first Nobel Prize winner in Medicine Emil Adolf von Behring. The company, which at the time was owned by Hoechst and is now part of Dade Behring, was originally set up to develop sera against Tetanus and Diphtheria. Because many of the signs and symptoms of Marburg hemorrhagic fever are similar to those of other infectious diseases, such as malaria or typhoid fever, diagnosis of the disease can be difficult, especially if only a single case is involved. The disease is characterised by the sudden onset of fever, headache, and muscle pain after an incubation period of 5-10 days. Within a week a maculopapular rash develops followed by vomiting, chest and abdominal pain, and diarrhea. The disease can then become increasingly damaging, causing jaundice, delirium, liver failure, and extensive hemorrhage. Recovery from the disease is prolonged and can be marked by orchitis, recurrent hepatitis, transverse myelitis or uveitis, inflammation of spinal cord, eye, or parotid gland. Depending upon health care and hospitalization support, the disease can have very high fatality rates, with estimates ranging from 25%http://www.cdc.gov/ncidod/dvrd/spb/mnpages/dispages/marburg.htm up to as high as 92% http://www.who.int/csr/don/2005_03_23/en/ although some observers have suggested that even that figure may be low http://www.recombinomics.com/News/03270504/Marburg_Luanda_Transmission.html. The most recent outbreak of the disease began in northern Angola towards the end of 2004 and had claimed 155 lives by April 4, 2005. An outbreak in the neighbouring Democratic Republic of Congo between 1998 and 2000 killed 123 people. An outbreak in the DRC in 2000 killed 140 people in just three weeks. According to the World Health Organization, 80 percent of the deaths in Angola have been children under the age of 15, but the virus has also started to claim adult victims, including six nurses and two foreign doctors. Countries with direct air links, such as Portugal, have begun screening passengers arriving from Angola. The Angolan government has asked for international assistance, pointing out that there are only about 1,200 doctors in the entire country with some provinces having as few as two. Mdecins Sans Frontires (MSF) reported that when their team arrived at the provincial hospital at the centre of the outbreak, they found it operating without water and electricity. Meanwhile, at Americo Boa Vida hospital in the capital, Luanda, a team of international experts prepared a special isolation ward to handle cases from the countryside. Despite the 30 degree Celsius temperatures, volunteer workers trained in white isolation suits which covered them from head to toe. The ward will be able to accomadate up to 40 patients when it opens. External links
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