Marburg and Ebola virus infections: A guide for their diagnosis management, and control

Pathology ◽  
1978 ◽  
Vol 10 (4) ◽  
pp. 404
Author(s):  
Yvonne Cossart
Keyword(s):  
Ebola Virus ◽  
Virus Infections ◽  
And Control

A point-of-care diagnostic for differentiating Ebola from endemic febrile diseases

2018 ◽  
Vol 10 (471) ◽  
pp. eaat0944 ◽  
Author(s):  
David Sebba ◽  
Alexander G. Lastovich ◽  
Melody Kuroda ◽  
Eric Fallows ◽  
Joshua Johnson ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Ebola Virus ◽  
Clinical Symptoms ◽  
Point Of Care ◽  
Hemorrhagic Fever ◽  
Diagnostic Methods ◽  
Outbreak Detection ◽  
Molecular Diagnostic ◽  
Clinical Samples ◽  
Live Virus ◽  
And Control

Hemorrhagic fever outbreaks such as Ebola are difficult to detect and control because of the lack of low-cost, easily deployable diagnostics and because initial clinical symptoms mimic other endemic diseases such as malaria. Current molecular diagnostic methods such as polymerase chain reaction require trained personnel and laboratory infrastructure, hindering diagnostics at the point of need. Although rapid tests such as lateral flow can be broadly deployed, they are typically not well-suited for differentiating among multiple diseases presenting with similar symptoms. Early detection and control of Ebola outbreaks require simple, easy-to-use assays that can detect and differentiate infection with Ebola virus from other more common febrile diseases. Here, we developed and tested an immunoassay technology that uses surface-enhanced Raman scattering (SERS) tags to simultaneously detect antigens from Ebola, Lassa, and malaria within a single blood sample. Results are provided in <30 min for individual or batched samples. Using 190 clinical samples collected from the 2014 West African Ebola outbreak, along with 163 malaria positives and 233 negative controls, we demonstrated Ebola detection with 90.0% sensitivity and 97.9% specificity and malaria detection with 100.0% sensitivity and 99.6% specificity. These results, along with corresponding live virus and nonhuman primate testing of an Ebola, Lassa, and malaria 3-plex assay, indicate the potential of the SERS technology as an important tool for outbreak detection and clinical triage in low-resource settings.

In Silico Perspective into Interactions and Mutations in Human TLR4 and Ebola Glycoprotein

2016 ◽  
pp. 209-231
Author(s):  
Sujay Ray ◽  
Arundhati Banerjee
Keyword(s):  
Viral Entry ◽  
Ebola Virus ◽  
Solvent Accessibility ◽  
Human Protein ◽  
Laboratory Research ◽  
Virus Infections ◽  
Conformational Switching ◽  
Toll Like Receptor 4 ◽  
Multiple Sequence ◽  
Life Threatening

Toll-Like Receptor-4 (TLR4) senses life-threatening Ebola virus Glycoprotein (GP) and produces pro-inflammatory cytokines, resulting in lethal Ebola virus infections. GP2-subunit of Ebola promotes viral entry via membrane fusion. The present study models, optimizes and demonstrates the 3D monomer of the responsible human protein. The essential residue (studied from wet-laboratory research) was observed to be functionally conserved from multiple-sequence alignment. Thus, after performing point-mutation, the mutant protein was satisfactorily re-modelled; keeping its functionality preserved. Comparable residual participation in GP2 and each of the proteins was examined, individually. Stability of the proteins and protein-GP2 complexes on mutation; were discerned via energy calculations, solvent-accessibility area and conformational switching, with supportive statistical significances. Therefore, this probe paves a pathway to examine the weaker interaction of the stable mutated human protein with Ebola GP2 protein, thereby defending the Ebola viral entry.

scholarly journals Screening for Anti-Influenza Actives of Prefractionated Traditional Chinese Medicines

2020 ◽  
Vol 2020 ◽  
pp. 1-7
Author(s):  
Qianli Kang ◽  
Yanyan Wang ◽  
Qinghua Cui ◽  
Lili Gong ◽  
Yong Yang ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Influenza Virus ◽  
Ebola Virus ◽  
Antiviral Treatment ◽  
Traditional Chinese Medicines ◽  
Virus Infections ◽  
Clinical Practices ◽  
Emerging Viruses ◽  
Gaussia Luciferase ◽  
Chinese Medicines ◽  
Antiviral Activities

Traditional Chinese medicines (TCMs) have proven to possess advantages in counteracting virus infections according to clinical practices. It’s therefore of great value to discover novel antivirals from TCMs. In this paper, One hundred medicinal plants which have been included in TCM prescriptions for antiviral treatment were selected and prefractionated into 5 fractions each by sequentially using cyclohexane, dichloromethane, ethyl acetate, n-butanol, and water. 500 TCM-simplified extracts were then subjected to a phenotypic screening using a recombinant IAV expressing Gaussia luciferase. Ten TCM fractions were identified to possess antiviral activities against influenza virus. The IC50’s of the hit fractions range from 1.08 to 6.45 μg/mL, while the SIs, from 7.52 to 98.40. Furthermore, all the ten hit fractions inhibited the propagation of progeny influenza virus significantly at 20 μg/mL. The hit TCM fractions deserve further isolation for responsible constituents leading towards anti-influenza drugs. Moreover, a library consisting of 500 simplified TCM extracts was established, facilitating antiviral screening in quick response to emerging and re-emerging viruses such as Ebola virus and current SARS-CoV-2 pandemic.

Understanding the Predictors that Contribute to Liberian Health Care Workers Feeling Protected From Ebola While at Work

2020 ◽  
pp. 1-6
Author(s):  
Kayla Enriquez ◽  
Kanagasabai Udhayashankar ◽  
Michelle Niescierenko
Keyword(s):  
Health Care ◽  
Health Care Workers ◽  
Ebola Virus ◽  
Virus Disease ◽  
Infection Prevention And Control ◽  
Care Workers ◽  
Before And After ◽  
Returning To Work ◽  
Care Worker ◽  
And Control

ABSTRACT Objective: To assess Liberian health care workers’ feelings around safety in returning to work in the setting of the Ebola virus disease outbreak of 2014–2015 after receiving infection prevention and control (IPC) training. Methods: Academic Consortium Combating Ebola in Liberia (ACCEL) training surveys were done at 21 public, Liberian hospitals to understand health care workers’ attitudes surrounding Ebola and whether they felt safe while at work based on multiple factors. Logistic regression was used for analysis. Results: We found that health care workers feeling safe at work during the Ebola outbreak was primarily predicted by the number of IPC/Ebola trainings received pre-ACCEL interventions. Health care workers felt increasingly safer and motivated to return to work as trainings approached 3 (OR 8, p-value < 0.001); however, more than 3 trainings resulted in decreased safety and motivation. In addition, health care workers who reported washing their hands before and after patient contact were 3.4 times more likely to understand how to protect themselves from Ebola. Conclusions: These results help to better understand the utility of repeated trainings on health care worker practice attitudes and the importance of IPC policies within hospitals, such as hand hygiene promotion and education, when coordinating humanitarian efforts.

scholarly journals Asymptomatic Ebola virus infections—myth or reality?

2017 ◽  
Vol 17 (6) ◽  
pp. 570-571 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jens H Kuhn ◽  
Sina Bavari
Keyword(s):  
Ebola Virus ◽  
Virus Infections

A screen of approved drugs and molecular probes identifies therapeutics with anti–Ebola virus activity

2015 ◽  
Vol 7 (290) ◽  
pp. 290ra89-290ra89 ◽  
Author(s):  
Lisa M. Johansen ◽  
Lisa Evans DeWald ◽  
Charles J. Shoemaker ◽  
Benjamin G. Hoffstrom ◽  
Calli M. Lear-Rooney ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Viral Entry ◽  
Ebola Virus ◽  
Molecular Probes ◽  
Infection Model ◽  
Channel Blockers ◽  
Emerging Infections ◽  
Virus Infections ◽  
Approved Drugs

Currently, no approved therapeutics exist to treat or prevent infections induced by Ebola viruses, and recent events have demonstrated an urgent need for rapid discovery of new treatments. Repurposing approved drugs for emerging infections remains a critical resource for potential antiviral therapies. We tested ~2600 approved drugs and molecular probes in an in vitro infection assay using the type species, Zaire ebolavirus. Selective antiviral activity was found for 80 U.S. Food and Drug Administration–approved drugs spanning multiple mechanistic classes, including selective estrogen receptor modulators, antihistamines, calcium channel blockers, and antidepressants. Results using an in vivo murine Ebola virus infection model confirmed the protective ability of several drugs, such as bepridil and sertraline. Viral entry assays indicated that most of these antiviral drugs block a late stage of viral entry. By nature of their approved status, these drugs have the potential to be rapidly advanced to clinical settings and used as therapeutic countermeasures for Ebola virus infections.

Viral hemorrhagic fever – a vascular disease?

2003 ◽  
Vol 89 (06) ◽  
pp. 967-972 ◽  
Author(s):  
Heinz Feldmann ◽  
Hans Schnittler
Keyword(s):  
Ebola Virus ◽  
Vascular System ◽  
Current Knowledge ◽  
Hemorrhagic Fever ◽  
Host Cells ◽  
Fluid Distribution ◽  
Target Cells ◽  
Viral Hemorrhagic Fever ◽  
Virus Infections ◽  
Cytokines And Chemokines

SummaryThe syndrome of “viral hemorrhagic fever” in man caused by certain viruses, such as Ebola, Lassa, Dengue, and Crimean-Congo hemorrhagic fever viruses, is often associated with a shock syndrome of undetermined pathogenesis. However, the vascular system, particularly the vascular endothelium, seems to be directly and indirectly targeted by all these viruses. Here we briefly summarize the current knowledge on Marburg and Ebola virus infections, the prototype viral hemorrhagic fever agents, and formulate a working hypothesis for the pathogenesis of viral hemorrhagic fever. Infections with filoviruses show lethality up to 89% and in severe cases lead to a shock syndrome associated with hypotension, coagulation disorders and an imbalance of fluid distribution between the intravascular and extravascular tissue space. The primary target cells for filovi-ruses are mononuclear phagocytotic cells which are activated upon infection and release certain cytokines and chemokines. These mediators indirectly target the endothelium and are thought to play a key role in the pathogenesis of filoviral hemorrhagic fever. In addition, direct infection and subsequent destruction of endothelial cells might contribute to the pathogenesis. Filoviruses, particularly Ebola virus, encode nonstructural glycoproteins which are released from infected host cells. Their function as potential determinants in pathogenicity remains to be investigated.

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