| ebola virus persistence in breast milk after no reported illness: a likely source of virus transmission from mother to child. | a 9-month-old infant died from ebola virus (ebov) disease with unknown epidemiological link. while her parents did not report previous illness, laboratory investigations revealed persisting ebov rna in the mother's breast milk and the father's seminal fluid. genomic analysis strongly suggests ebov transmission to the child through breastfeeding. | 2016 | 27940938 |
| rt-pcr using glycoprotein target is more sensitive for the detection of ebola virus in clinical samples. | the recent largest ever ebola virus disease (evd) outbreak in west africa has been of worldwide concern, causing huge economic losses and constituting serious threat to the local residents and health care workers. rapid detection of ebola virus (ebov) using rt-pcr has been suggested to be of great value in stopping the outbreak, because it is highly sensitive and specific and can return results within hours. in this study, 210 clinical samples, including 109 blood and 101 nasopharyngeal swab sam ... | 2017 | 27939819 |
| clinical features and outcome of ebola virus disease in pediatric patients: a retrospective case series. | clinical and outcome data on pediatric ebola virus disease are limited. we report a case-series of 33 pediatric patients with ebola virus disease in a single ebola treatment center in 2014-2015. the case-fatality rate was 42%, with the majority of deaths occurring within 10 days of admission. | 2017 | 27939106 |
| planning for the unexpected: ebola virus, zika virus, what's next? | since 2000 we have witnessed global pandemics and public health emergencies of international concern. this review details which viruses are likely to caused further outbreaks and looks at the strategies and tools available to uk medical professionals to mitigate the threat posed. | 2016 | 27937012 |
| profile and reintegration experience of ebola survivors in guinea: a cross-sectional study. | to describe the experience of guinean ebola virus disease (evd) survivors in guinea, up to ten months after discharge from the ebola treatment unit. | 2017 | 27935657 |
| unlocking bat immunology: establishment of pteropus alecto bone marrow-derived dendritic cells and macrophages. | bats carry and shed many emerging infectious disease agents including ebola virus and sars-like coronaviruses, yet they rarely display clinical symptoms of infection. bat epithelial or fibroblast cell lines were previously established to study the bat immune response against viral infection. however, the lack of professional immune cells such as dendritic cells (dc) and macrophages has greatly limited the significance of current investigations. using pteropus alecto (p. alecto) gm-csf plus il4, ... | 2016 | 27934903 |
| integration of global analyses of host molecular responses with clinical data to evaluate pathogenesis and advance therapies for emerging and re-emerging viral infections. | outbreaks associated with emerging and re-emerging viral pathogens continue to increase in frequency and are associated with an increasing burden to global health. in light of this, there is a need to integrate basic and clinical research for investigating the connections between molecular and clinical pathogenesis and for therapeutic development strategies. here, we will discuss this approach with a focus on the emerging viral pathogens middle east respiratory syndrome coronavirus (mers-cov), e ... | 2016 | 27933782 |
| validation of the cepheid genexpert for detecting ebola virus in semen. | ebola virus (ebov) rna persistence in semen, reported sexual transmission, and sporadic clusters at the end of the 2013-2016 epidemic have prompted recommendations that male survivors refrain from unprotected sex unless their semen is confirmed to be ebov free. however, there is no fully validated assay for ebov detection in fluids other than blood. | 2017 | 27932614 |
| novel activities by ebolavirus and marburgvirus interferon antagonists revealed using a standardized in vitro reporter system. | filoviruses are highly lethal in humans and nonhuman primates, likely due to potent antagonism of host interferon (ifn) responses early in infection. filoviral protein vp35 is implicated as the major ifn induction antagonist, while ebola virus (ebov) vp24 or marburg virus (marv) vp40 are known to block downstream ifn signaling. despite progress elucidating ebov and marv antagonist function, those for most other filoviruses, including reston (restv), sudan (sudv), taï forest (tafv), bundibugyo (b ... | 2017 | 27930961 |
| development of a prediction model for ebola virus disease: a retrospective study in nzérékoré ebola treatment center, guinea. | the 2014 ebola epidemic has shown the importance of accurate and rapid triage tools for patients with suspected ebola virus disease (evd). our objective was to create a predictive score for evd. we retrospectively reviewed all suspected cases admitted to the ebola treatment center (etc) in nzérékoré, guinea, between december 2, 2014, and february 23, 2015. we used a multivariate logistic regression model to identify clinical and epidemiological factors associated with evd, which were used to cre ... | 2016 | 27928085 |
| a two-dose heterologous prime-boost vaccine regimen eliciting sustained immune responses to ebola zaire could support a preventive strategy for future outbreaks. | the consequences of the 2013-16 ebola zaire virus disease epidemic in west africa were grave. the economies, healthcare systems and communities of guinea, sierra leone and liberia were devastated by over 18 months of active ebola virus transmission, followed by sporadic resurgences potentially related to sexual transmission by survivors with viral persistence in body fluids following recovery. the need to develop and implement strategies to prevent and mitigate future outbreaks is now beyond dis ... | 2017 | 27925844 |
| incident management systems are essential for effective coordination of large disease outbreaks: perspectives from the coordination of the ebola outbreak response in sierra leone. | response to the 2014-2015 ebola virus disease (evd) outbreak in sierra leone overwhelmed the national capacity to contain it and necessitated a massive international response and strong coordination platform. consequently, the sierra leone government, with support of the international humanitarian community, established and implemented various models for national coordination of the outbreak. in this article, we review the strengths and limitations of the evd outbreak response coordination syste ... | 2016 | 27917377 |
| public health and public trust: survey evidence from the ebola virus disease epidemic in liberia. | trust in government has long been viewed as an important determinant of citizens' compliance with public health policies, especially in times of crisis. yet evidence on this relationship remains scarce, particularly in the developing world. we use results from a representative survey conducted during the 2014-15 ebola virus disease (evd) epidemic in monrovia, liberia to assess the relationship between trust in government and compliance with evd control interventions. we find that respondents who ... | 2017 | 27914936 |
| ophthalmic manifestations and causes of vision impairment in ebola virus disease survivors in monrovia, liberia. | to describe the ocular findings, visual impairment, and association of structural complications of uveitis with visual impairment in a cohort of survivors of ebola virus disease (evd) in monrovia, liberia. | 2017 | 27914832 |
| evaluation of the inactivation effect of triton x-100 on ebola virus infectivity. | the recent ebola virus disease outbreak occurred in west africa since december 2013 highlighted the need of appropriate virus inactivation procedures to be set up to allow the necessary processing of specimens outside bsl-4 facilities and to perform laboratory tests without affecting clinical decisions. for this purpose, international guidelines suggest the pre-treatment of the samples with triton x-100. | 2017 | 27912126 |
| the disinfection characteristics of ebola virus outbreak variants. | the recent ebola virus outbreak in west africa has forced experts to re-evaluate their understanding of how to best disinfect areas contaminated with infectious bodily fluids. recent research has found that ebola virus remains viable in blood for 7-10 days making appropriate disinfection crucial to infection control. we sought to determine if the three most important outbreak variants of zaire ebolavirus (mayinga, kikwit and makona) exhibit separate phenotypes when challenged with a range of sod ... | 2016 | 27910909 |
| ebola virus vaccines: where do we stand? | the recent outbreak of ebola virus disease in west africa has led to more than 11,000 deaths, with a peak in mortality from august through december of 2014. a meeting convened by the world health organization (who) in september 2014, concluded that an urgent unmet need exists for efficacy and safety testing of the ebola virus vaccine candidates and that clinical trials should be expedited. these vaccines could be used both in an outbreak setting and to provide long-term protection in populations ... | 2016 | 27910805 |
| use of multiplex pcr to rapidly diagnose febrile patients during a gastroenteritis outbreak among ebola virus treatment unit workers. | multiplex pcr can provide rapid diagnosis for patients presenting with an acute undifferentiated febrile illness. such technology is useful in deployed settings, where access to conventional microbiological diagnosis is limited. it was used in sierra leone to guide management of febrile healthcare workers, in whom ebola virus disease was a possible cause. in particular, it informed appropriate antibiotic treatment while minimising the risk to clinicians of exposure to the causative organism. | 2017 | 27909068 |
| assessment of the potential for host-targeted iminosugars uv-4 and uv-5 activity against filovirus infections in vitro and in vivo. | iminosugars are host-directed antivirals with broad-spectrum activity. the iminosugar, n-butyl-deoxynojirimycin (nb-dnj or miglustat(®)), is used in humans for treatment of gaucher's disease and has mild antiviral properties. more potent analogs of nb-dnj have been generated and have demonstrated activity against a variety of viruses including flaviviruses, influenza, herpesviruses and filoviruses. in the current study, a panel of analogs based on nb-dnj was analyzed for activity against ebola ( ... | 2017 | 27908828 |
| a chaotic model for the epidemic of ebola virus disease in west africa (2013-2016). | an epidemic of ebola virus disease (evd) broke out in guinea in december 2013. it was only identified in march 2014 while it had already spread out in liberia and sierra leone. the spill over of the disease became uncontrollable and the epidemic could not be stopped before 2016. the time evolution of this epidemic is revisited here with the global modeling technique which was designed to obtain the deterministic models from single time series. a generalized formulation of this technique for mult ... | 2016 | 27908019 |
| development and implementation of the ebola traveler monitoring program and clinical outcomes of monitored travelers during october - may 2015, minnesota. | in october 2014, the united states began actively monitoring all persons who had traveled from guinea, liberia, and sierra leone in the previous 21 days. state public health departments were responsible for monitoring all travelers; minnesota has the largest liberian population in the united states. the mdh ebola clinical team (ect) was established to assess travelers with symptoms of concern for ebola virus disease (evd), coordinate access to healthcare at appropriate facilities including ebola ... | 2016 | 27907013 |
| evaluation of the activity of lamivudine and zidovudine against ebola virus. | in the fall of 2014, an international news agency reported that patients suffering from ebola virus disease (evd) in liberia were treated successfully with lamivudine, an antiviral drug used to treat human immunodeficiency virus-1 and hepatitis b virus infections. according to the report, 13 out of 15 patients treated with lamivudine survived and were declared free from ebola virus disease. in this study, the anti-ebola virus (ebov) activity of lamivudine and another antiretroviral, zidovudine, ... | 2016 | 27902714 |
| the serology of ebolavirus - a wider geographical range, a wider genus of viruses or a wider range of virulence? | viruses of the genus ebolavirus are the causative agents of ebola virus disease (evd), of which there have been only 25 recorded outbreaks since the discovery of zaire and sudan ebolaviruses in the late 1970s. until the west african outbreak commencing in late 2013, evd was confined to an area of central africa stretching from the coast of gabon through the congo river basin and eastward to the great lakes. nevertheless, population serological studies since 1976, most of which were carried out i ... | 2016 | 27902321 |
| nmc suspends nurse for decision on ebola temperature. | a nurse has been suspended for 2 months for concealing the fact that her colleague pauline cafferkey had a temperature before she tested positive for ebola virus. | 2016 | 27902142 |
| combating ebola with repurposed therapeutics using the cando platform. | ebola virus disease (evd) is extremely virulent with an estimated mortality rate of up to 90%. however, the state-of-the-art treatment for evd is limited to quarantine and supportive care. the 2014 ebola epidemic in west africa, the largest in history, is believed to have caused more than 11,000 fatalities. the countries worst affected are also among the poorest in the world. given the complexities, time, and resources required for a novel drug development, finding efficient drug discovery pathw ... | 2016 | 27898018 |
| the role of the laboratory and transfusion service in the management of ebola virus disease. | the ebola outbreak that began in 2013 infected and killed record numbers of individuals and created unprecedented challenges, including containment and treatment of the virus in resource-strained west africa as well as the repatriation and treatment for patients in the united states and europe. valuable lessons were learned, especially the important role that the laboratory and transfusion service plays in the treatment for patients with ebola virus disease (evd) by providing data for supportive ... | 2016 | 27894669 |
| ebola virus disease: an update on current prevention and management strategies. | ebola virus disease (evd) is characterised by systemic viral replication, immuno-suppression, abnormal inflammatory responses, large volume fluid and electrolyte losses, and high mortality in under-resourced settings. there are various therapeutic strategies targeting evd including vaccines utilizing different antigen delivery methods, antibody-based therapies and antiviral drugs. these therapies remain experimental, but received attention following their use particularly in cases treated outsid ... | 2017 | 27893999 |
| synergistic drug combination effectively blocks ebola virus infection. | although a group of fda-approved drugs were previously identified with activity against ebola virus (ebov), most of them are not clinically useful because their human blood concentrations are not high enough to inhibit ebov infection. we screened 795 unique three-drug combinations in an ebov entry assay. two sets of three-drug combinations, toremifene-mefloquine-posaconazole and toremifene-clarithromycin-posaconazole, were identified that effectively blocked ebov entry and were further validated ... | 2017 | 27890675 |
| the predictor of mortality outcome in adult patients with ebola virus disease during the 2014-2015 outbreak in guinea. | the purpose of this study was to examine the association of any demographic and clinical factors with mortality outcome among adult patients with ebola virus disease (evd) in guinea. this retrospective observational study analyzed medical records of laboratory confirmed evd adult patients during the 2014-2015 evd outbreak in guinea. the associations between any demographic or clinical variables and mortality outcome of evd were assessed using univariate and multivariate logistic regression analy ... | 2017 | 27888403 |
| understanding the complex evolution of rapidly mutating viruses with deep sequencing: beyond the analysis of viral diversity. | with the advent of affordable deep sequencing technologies, detection of low frequency variants within genetically diverse viral populations can now be achieved with unprecedented depth and efficiency. the high-resolution data provided by next generation sequencing technologies is currently recognised as the gold standard in estimation of viral diversity. in the analysis of rapidly mutating viruses, longitudinal deep sequencing datasets from viral genomes during individual infection episodes, as ... | 2016 | 27888126 |
| how severe and prevalent are ebola and marburg viruses? a systematic review and meta-analysis of the case fatality rates and seroprevalence. | ebola and marburg virus diseases are said to occur at a low prevalence, but are very severe diseases with high lethalities. the fatality rates reported in different outbreaks ranged from 24-100%. in addition, sero-surveys conducted have shown different seropositivity for both ebola and marburg viruses. we aimed to use a meta-analysis approach to estimate the case fatality and seroprevalence rates of these filoviruses, providing vital information for epidemic response and preparedness in countrie ... | 2016 | 27887599 |
| minimal in vivo efficacy of iminosugars in a lethal ebola virus guinea pig model. | the antiviral properties of iminosugars have been reported previously in vitro and in small animal models against ebola virus (ebov); however, their effects have not been tested in larger animal models such as guinea pigs. we tested the iminosugars n-butyl-deoxynojirimycin (nb-dnj) and n-(9-methoxynonyl)-1deoxynojirimycin (mon-dnj) for safety in uninfected animals, and for antiviral efficacy in animals infected with a lethal dose of guinea pig adapted ebov. 1850 mg/kg/day nb-dnj and 120 mg/kg/da ... | 2016 | 27880800 |
| unusual ebola virus chain of transmission, conakry, guinea, 2014-2015. | in october 2015, a new case of ebola virus disease in guinea was detected. case investigation, serology, and whole-genome sequencing indicated possible transmission of the virus from an ebola virus disease survivor to another person and then to the case-patient reported here. this transmission chain over 11 months suggests slow ebola virus evolution. | 2016 | 27869596 |
| evaluation of convalescent whole blood for treating ebola virus disease in freetown, sierra leone. | convalescent blood therapy has been a promising form of treatment for ebola virus disease (evd), but less attention has been focused on it for treatment. | 2017 | 27867062 |
| extraordinary long-term and fluctuating persistence of ebola virus rna in semen of survivors in guinea: implications for public health. | | 2016 | 27866862 |
| rapid detection of viral antibodies based on multifunctional staphylococcus aureus nanobioprobes. | biosynthesis of nanoparticles inside s. aureus cells has enhanced the sensitivity of immunoassays based on the s. aureus nanoparticles. however, the current methods are limited to antigen detection by conjugating igg antibodies on s. aureus nanoparticles. in this study, a simple way to conjugate antigens to the s. aureus nanobioparticles was developed by utilizing a cell wall binding domain (cbd) from a bacteriophage lysin plyv12. based on this novel design, simple agglutination tests of the igg ... | 2016 | 27866631 |
| enabling rapid response to the 2014-2016 ebola epidemic: the experience and the results of the national institute for infectious diseases lazzaro spallanzani. | the unprecedented epidemic of ebola virus disease (evd) in west africa highlighted the need for stronger systems for disease surveillance, response, and prevention worldwide. tackling an epidemic event today requires a broader view, not only limited to medical management of the patients, but which also includes heroic efforts by clinicians and public health personnel.since its foundation in 1936, inmi has been devoted to the prevention, diagnosis and care for infectious diseases. in 2009, inmi b ... | 2016 | 27864803 |
| the natural compound silvestrol is a potent inhibitor of ebola virus replication. | the dead-box rna helicase eif4a, which is part of the heterotrimeric translation initiation complex in eukaryotes, is an important novel drug target in cancer research because its helicase activity is required to unwind extended and highly structured 5'-utrs of several proto-oncogenes. silvestrol, a natural compound isolated from the plant aglaia foveolata, is a highly efficient, non-toxic and specific inhibitor of eif4a. importantly, 5'-capped viral mrnas often contain structured 5'-utrs as wel ... | 2017 | 27864075 |
| the roles of ebolavirus glycoproteins in viral pathogenesis. | ebolaviruses are highly dangerous pathogens exhibiting extreme virulence in humans and nonhuman primates. the majority of ebolavirus species, most notably zaire ebolavirus, can cause ebola virus disease (evd), formerly known as ebola hemorrhagic fever, in humans. evd is associated with case-fatality rates as high as 90%, and there is currently no specific treatment or licensed vaccine available against evd. understanding the molecular biology and pathogenesis of ebolaviruses is important for the ... | 2017 | 27853993 |
| spatial spread of the west africa ebola epidemic. | controlling ebola outbreaks and planning an effective response to future emerging diseases are enhanced by understanding the role of geography in transmission. here we show how epidemic expansion may be predicted by evaluating the relative probability of alternative epidemic paths. we compared multiple candidate models to characterize the spatial network over which the 2013-2015 west africa epidemic of ebola virus spread and estimate the effects of geographical covariates on transmission during ... | 2016 | 27853607 |
| the post-ebola virus disease scourge in nigeria: individual levels of preparedness among physicians in the federal capital territory abuja. | ebola virus disease (evd) is a viral hemorrhagic illness with great propensity for spread across international borders. the latest outbreak in the west african region, which involved nigeria, was the worst among previously documented 25 outbreaks since discovery in 1976. the nigerian response toward attaining ebola free status was phenomenal and a case study for most nations. however, the persistence of evd in west africa is still a risk to recurrence, hence, the need to assess the level of cons ... | 2017 | 27853031 |
| regulation of ebola virus vp40 matrix protein by sumo. | the matrix protein of ebola virus (ebov) vp40 regulates viral budding, nucleocapsid recruitment, virus structure and stability, viral genome replication and transcription, and has an intrinsic ability to form virus-like particles. the elucidation of the regulation of vp40 functions is essential to identify mechanisms to inhibit viral replication and spread. post-translational modifications of proteins with ubiquitin-like family members are common mechanisms for the regulation of host and virus m ... | 2016 | 27849047 |
| [science in a crisis. medical countermeasures in ebola virus disease, 2016: lessons learned and perspectives]. | in 2013, the world began to witness an unprecedented ebola epidemic in west africa that was smoldering by early 2016. under this urgent circumstance, the global scientific community organized and made progress in identifying potential preventive countermeasures and therapeutics and accelerated the development of those promising interventions. trials of experimental interventions soon emerged as a key component of the global response. hence, an interdisciplinary issue ensued concerning how best t ... | 2016 | 27848225 |
| functional characterization of adaptive mutations during the west african ebola virus outbreak. | the ebola virus (ebov) outbreak in west africa started in december 2013, claimed more than 11,000 lives, threatened to destabilize a whole region, and showed how easily health crises can turn into humanitarian disasters. ebov genomic sequences of the west african outbreak revealed nonsynonymous mutations, which induced considerable public attention, but their role in virus spread and disease remains obscure. in this study, we investigated the functional significance of three nonsynonymous mutati ... | 2017 | 27847361 |
| crystal structure of the marburg virus vp35 oligomerization domain. | marburg virus (marv) is a highly pathogenic filovirus that is classified in a genus distinct from that of ebola virus (ebov) (genera marburgvirus and ebolavirus, respectively). both viruses produce a multifunctional protein termed vp35, which acts as a polymerase cofactor, a viral protein chaperone, and an antagonist of the innate immune response. vp35 contains a central oligomerization domain with a predicted coiled-coil motif. this domain has been shown to be essential for rna polymerase funct ... | 2017 | 27847355 |
| minimally symptomatic infection in an ebola 'hotspot': a cross-sectional serosurvey. | evidence for minimally symptomatic ebola virus (ebov) infection is limited. during the 2013-16 outbreak in west africa, it was not considered epidemiologically relevant to published models or projections of intervention effects. in order to improve our understanding of the transmission dynamics of ebov in humans, we investigated the occurrence of minimally symptomatic ebov infection in quarantined contacts of reported ebola virus disease cases in a recognized 'hotspot.' | 2016 | 27846221 |
| network visualization for outbreak response: mapping the ebola virus disease (evd) chains of transmission in n'zérékoré, guinea. | during the 2014-2015 ebola virus disease (evd) outbreak in n'zérékoré, forested guinea, modes of transmission remained unexamined for a number of new cases. we used network visualization to investigate evd transmission chains (tc) in seven sub-prefectures of n'zérékoré in order to adapt outbreak response. | 2017 | 27840270 |
| the early clinical development of ebola virus treatments. | | 2017 | 27838928 |
| yoctomole electrochemical genosensing of ebola virus cdna by rolling circle and circle to circle amplification. | this work addresses the design of an ebola diagnostic test involving a simple, rapid, specific and highly sensitive procedure based on isothermal amplification on magnetic particles with electrochemical readout. ebola padlock probes were designed to detect a specific l-gene sequence present in the five most common ebola species. ebola cdna was amplified by rolling circle amplification (rca) on magnetic particles. further re-amplification was performed by circle-to-circle amplification (c2ca) and ... | 2017 | 27838201 |
| mathematical model of ebola transmission dynamics with relapse and reinfection. | the ebola virus disease is caused by the ebola virus which belongs to the filoviridae virus family. the 2014 outbreaks were estimated to have caused over 11,000 fatalities. in this paper, we formulate and analyze a system of ordinary differential equations which incorporates disease relapse and reinfection. the ebola model with disease relapse and reinfection is locally-asymptotically stable when the basic reproduction number is less than unity. the model exhibits in the presence of disease rein ... | 2017 | 27833001 |
| emergence of ebola virus disease in a french acute care setting: a simulation study based on documented inter-individual contacts. | the potential spread of nosocomial ebola virus disease (evd) in non-outbreak areas is not known. the objective was to use detailed contact data on patients and healthcare workers (hcw) to estimate emergence probability and secondary incident cases (sic) of evd after hospitalization of an index case with undetected evd. contact data were collected through rfid devices used by patients and hcw during hospital care. a "susceptible-exposed-infected" model was used. emergence probability, ranged from ... | 2016 | 27827383 |
| impact of infectious disease epidemics on tuberculosis diagnostic, management, and prevention services: experiences and lessons from the 2014-2015 ebola virus disease outbreak in west africa. | the world health organization (who) global tuberculosis report 2015 states that 28% of the world's 9.6 million new tuberculosis (tb) cases are in the who africa region. the mano river union (mru) countries of west africa-guinea, sierra leone, and liberia-have made incremental sustained investments into tb control programmes over the past two decades. the devastating ebola virus disease (evd) outbreak of 2014-2015 in west africa impacted significantly on all sectors of the healthcare systems in t ... | 2017 | 27818362 |
| did a single amino acid change make ebola virus more virulent? | a mutation in the ebola virus glycoprotein arose early during the 2013-2016 epidemic and dominated the viral population. two studies by diehl et al. and urbanowicz et al. now reveal that this mutation is associated with higher infectivity to human cells, representing the clearest example of ebola's functional adaptation to human hosts. | 2016 | 27814518 |
| ebola virus glycoprotein with increased infectivity dominated the 2013-2016 epidemic. | the magnitude of the 2013-2016 ebola virus disease (evd) epidemic enabled an unprecedented number of viral mutations to occur over successive human-to-human transmission events, increasing the probability that adaptation to the human host occurred during the outbreak. we investigated one nonsynonymous mutation, ebola virus (ebov) glycoprotein (gp) mutant a82v, for its effect on viral infectivity. this mutation, located at the npc1-binding site on ebov gp, occurred early in the 2013-2016 outbreak ... | 2016 | 27814506 |
| human adaptation of ebola virus during the west african outbreak. | the 2013-2016 outbreak of ebola virus (ebov) in west africa was the largest recorded. it began following the cross-species transmission of ebov from an animal reservoir, most likely bats, into humans, with phylogenetic analysis revealing the co-circulation of several viral lineages. we hypothesized that this prolonged human circulation led to genomic changes that increased viral transmissibility in humans. we generated a synthetic glycoprotein (gp) construct based on the earliest reported isolat ... | 2016 | 27814505 |
| ebola: anatomy of an epidemic. | as of the end of march 2016, the west africa epidemic of ebola virus disease (ebola) had resulted in a total of 28,646 cases, 11,323 of them fatal, reported to the world health organization. guinea, liberia, and sierra leone were most heavily affected, but ebola cases were exported to several other african and european countries as well as the united states, with limited further transmission, including to healthcare workers. we review the descriptive epidemiology of the outbreak, novel aspects a ... | 2017 | 27813879 |
| notes from the field: rift valley fever response - kabale district, uganda, march 2016. | on march 9, 2016, a male butcher from kabale district, uganda, aged 45 years, reported to the kabale regional referral hospital with fever, fatigue, and headache associated with black tarry stools and bleeding from the nose. one day later, a student aged 16 years from a different sub-county in kabale district developed similar symptoms and was admitted to the same hospital. the student also had a history of contact with livestock. blood specimens collected from both patients were sent for testin ... | 2016 | 27811840 |
| cannabidiol: a potential treatment for post ebola syndrome? | patients recovered from ebola virus infection may experience short- and long-term physical, neuropsychological and social sequelae, including arthralgia, musculoskeletal pain, ophthalmic inflammation, auditory problems, fatigue, confusion, insomnia, short-term memory impairment, anxiety, depression and anorexia, all lasting from two weeks to more than two years. currently there are no treatments for post ebola sequelae. we hypothesize that cannabidiol (cbd) may attenuate some of these post ebola ... | 2016 | 27686726 |
| epidemiologic characteristics, clinical manifestations, and risk factors of 139 patients with ebola virus disease in western sierra leone. | we aimed to fully describe epidemiologic characteristics, clinical manifestations, and clinical outcomes of ebola virus disease (evd), as well as detect independent factors significantly associated with mortality of the disease. | 2016 | 27317404 |
| one-health: a safe, efficient, dual-use vaccine for humans and animals against middle east respiratory syndrome coronavirus and rabies virus. | middle east respiratory syndrome coronavirus (mers-cov) emerged in 2012 and is a highly pathogenic respiratory virus. there are no treatment options against mers-cov for humans or animals, and there are no large-scale clinical trials for therapies against mers-cov. to address this need, we developed an inactivated rabies virus (rabv) that contains the mers-cov spike (s) protein expressed on its surface. our initial recombinant vaccine, bnsp333-s, expresses a full-length wild-type mers-cov s prot ... | 2017 | 27807241 |
| an outbreak inside an epidemic: managing an infectious disease outbreak while treating ebola. | even in the middle of an epidemic of a very serious illness, outbreaks of other infectious diseases will continue. clinicians need to be able to make rapid decisions about the nature of the outbreak and how to manage it. a balance needs to be struck between managing all patients as if they have the worst-case scenario illness and the resultant risks to themselves, their colleagues and the mission. this paper reviews basic epidemiological tools that inform robust decision-making in the management ... | 2017 | 27807010 |
| simulating the potential role of media coverage and infected bats in the 2014 ebola outbreak. | multiple epidemiological models have been developed to model the transmission dynamics of ebola virus (ebov) disease in west africa in 2014 because the severity of the epidemic is commonly overestimated. a compartmental model that incorporates the media impact and the effect of infected bats was constructed and calibrated using data reported until the end of 2014. the final cumulative number of deaths and confirmed cases were estimated to be 1.0921×10(4) (95% ci 9.7706×10(3)-1.2072×10(4)) and 1. ... | 2017 | 27806921 |
| clinical presentations and outcomes of patients with ebola virus disease in freetown, sierra leone. | clinical and laboratory data were collected and analysed from patients with ebola virus disease (evd) in jui government hospital in freetown, sierra leone, where patients with evd were received and/or treated from october 1, 2014 to march 21, 2015 during the west africa evd outbreak. | 2016 | 27806732 |
| containing ebola at the source with ring vaccination. | interim results from the guinea ebola ring vaccination trial suggest high efficacy of the rvsv-zebov vaccine. these findings open the door to the use of ring vaccination strategies in which the contacts and contacts of contacts of each index case are promptly vaccinated to contain future ebola virus disease outbreaks. to provide a numerical estimate of the effectiveness of ring vaccination strategies we introduce a spatially explicit agent-based model to simulate ebola outbreaks in the pujehun d ... | 2016 | 27806049 |
| preparing the health system to respond to ebola virus disease in new york city, 2014. | the world's largest outbreak of ebola virus disease began in west africa in 2014. although few cases were identified in the united states, the possibility of imported cases led us public health systems and health care facilities to focus on preparing the health care system to quickly and safely identify and respond to emerging infectious diseases. in new york city, early, coordinated planning among city and state agencies and the health care delivery system led to a successful response to a sing ... | 2016 | 27804911 |
| antiviral screening of multiple compounds against ebola virus. | in light of the recent outbreak of ebola virus (ebov) disease in west africa, there have been renewed efforts to search for effective antiviral countermeasures. a range of compounds currently available with broad antimicrobial activity have been tested for activity against ebov. using live ebov, eighteen candidate compounds were screened for antiviral activity in vitro. the compounds were selected on a rational basis because their mechanisms of action suggested that they had the potential to dis ... | 2016 | 27801778 |
| comprehensive characterization of cellular immune responses following ebola virus infection. | the west african ebola virus disease (evd) outbreak was the largest evd outbreak in history. however, data on lymphocyte dynamics and the antigen specificity of t cells in ebola survivors are scarce, and our understanding of evd pathophysiology is limited. a case of evd survival in which the patient cleared ebola virus (ebov) infection without experimental drugs allowed for the detailed examination of lymphocyte dynamics. we demonstrate the persistence of t-cell activation well beyond viral clea ... | 2017 | 27799354 |
| molecular mechanisms of ebola pathogenesis. | ebola viruses (ebovs) and marburg viruses (marvs) are among the deadliest human viruses, as highlighted by the recent and widespread ebola virus outbreak in west africa, which was the largest and longest epidemic of ebola virus disease (evd) in history, resulting in significant loss of life and disruptions across multiple continents. although the number of cases has nearly reached its nadir, a recent cluster of 5 cases in guinea on march 17, 2016, has extended the enhanced surveillance period to ... | 2016 | 27587404 |
| human antibody repertoire after vsv-ebola vaccination identifies novel targets and virus-neutralizing igm antibodies. | development of an effective vaccine against ebola virus is of high priority. however, knowledge about potential correlates of protection and the durability of immune response after vaccination is limited. here, we elucidate the human antibody repertoire after administration of vesicular stomatitis virus (vsv)-ebola vaccine at 3 million, 20 million and 100 million plaque-forming units (pfu) and homologous vsv-ebola vaccine boost in healthy adult volunteers. whole genome-fragment phage display lib ... | 2016 | 27798615 |
| development of a sensitive and specific serological assay based on luminex technology for detection of antibodies to zaire ebola virus. | the recent zaire ebola virus (ebov) outbreak in west africa illustrates clearly the need for additional studies with humans and animals to elucidate the ecology of ebola viruses (ebvs). in this study, we developed a serological assay based on the luminex technology. nine recombinant proteins representing different viral regions (nucleoprotein [np], 40-kda viral protein [vp40], and glycoprotein [gp]) from four of the five ebv lineages were used. samples from 94 survivors of the ebov outbreak in g ... | 2017 | 27795350 |
| comparison of magpix assays and enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay for detection of hemorrhagic fever viruses. | viral hemorrhagic fevers, because of their high mortality rates, the lack of medical countermeasures, and their potential use as instruments of bioterrorism, pose a significant threat to the developed and the developing areas of the world. the key to preventing the spread of these diseases is early and accurate detection. for decades, the gold-standard immunoassay for hemorrhagic fever detection has been the enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (elisa); however, newer technologies are emerging with ... | 2017 | 27795340 |
| complete genome sequence of an ebola virus isolate imported from sierra leone to germany determined by circle sequencing. | we report here a complete genome sequence of ebola virus makona from a nonfatal patient sample that originated in sierra leone during the last ebola virus outbreak in west africa (species zaire ebolavirus) using a highly accurate circle sequencing (cir-seq) method. | 2016 | 27795234 |
| favipiravir pharmacokinetics in nonhuman primates and insights for future efficacy studies of hemorrhagic fever viruses. | favipiravir is an rna polymerase inhibitor that showed strong antiviral efficacy in vitro and in small-animal models of several viruses responsible for hemorrhagic fever (hf), including ebola virus. the aim of this work was to characterize the complex pharmacokinetics of favipiravir in nonhuman primates (nhps) in order to guide future efficacy studies of favipiravir in large-animal models. four different studies were conducted in 30 uninfected cynomolgus macaques of chinese (n = 17) or mauritian ... | 2017 | 27736754 |
| the tetherin antagonism of the ebola virus glycoprotein requires an intact receptor-binding domain and can be blocked by gp1-specific antibodies. | the glycoprotein of ebola virus (ebov gp), a member of the family filoviridae, facilitates viral entry into target cells. in addition, ebov gp antagonizes the antiviral activity of the host cell protein tetherin, which may otherwise restrict ebov release from infected cells. however, it is unclear how ebov gp antagonizes tetherin, and it is unknown whether the gp of lloviu virus (llov), a filovirus found in dead bats in northern spain, also counteracts tetherin. here, we show that llov gp antago ... | 2016 | 27707924 |
| ebola virus: a gap in drug design and discovery - experimental and computational perspective. | the ebola virus, formally known as the ebola hemorrhagic fever, is an acute viral syndrome causing sporadic outbreaks that have ravaged west africa. due to its extreme virulence and highly transmissible nature, ebola has been classified as a category a bioweapon organism. only recently have vaccine or drug regimens for the ebola virus been developed, including zmapp and peptides. in addition, existing drugs which have been repurposed toward anti-ebola virus activity have been re-examined and are ... | 2017 | 27637475 |
| integrated computational approach for virtual hit identification against ebola viral proteins vp35 and vp40. | the ebola virus (ebov) has been recognised for nearly 40 years, with the most recent ebov outbreak being in west africa, where it created a humanitarian crisis. mortalities reported up to 30 march 2016 totalled 11,307. however, up until now, ebov drugs have been far from achieving regulatory (fda) approval. it is therefore essential to identify parent compounds that have the potential to be developed into effective drugs. studies on ebola viral proteins have shown that some can elicit an immunol ... | 2016 | 27792169 |
| resurgence of ebola virus disease in guinea linked to a survivor with virus persistence in seminal fluid for more than 500 days. | we report on an ebola virus disease (evd) survivor who showed ebola virus in seminal fluid 531 days after onset of disease. the persisting virus was sexually transmitted in february 2016, about 470 days after onset of symptoms, and caused a new cluster of evd in guinea and liberia. | 2016 | 27585800 |
| editorial commentary: considerations of favipiravir as a medical countermeasure in future randomized controlled trials against ebola virus disease. | | 2016 | 27553374 |
| clinical and virological characteristics of ebola virus disease patients treated with favipiravir (t-705)-sierra leone, 2014. | during 2014-2015, an outbreak of ebola virus disease (evd) swept across parts of west africa. no approved antiviral drugs are available for ebola treatment currently. | 2016 | 27553371 |
| new evidence of long-lasting persistence of ebola virus genetic material in semen of survivors. | ninety-eight semen specimens were obtained for ebola virus (ebov) rna screening from 68 men in guinea during the convalescent phase of ebov infection. ten samples from 8 men were positive for ebov up to 9 months after onset of the disease, with decreasing trends in the proportion of positive samples and the level of viral rna. safe sex practices should be observed after discharge from treatment centers. | 2016 | 27142204 |
| ebola virus rna in the semen of male survivors of ebola virus disease: the uncertain gravitas of a privileged persistence. | | 2016 | 27142203 |
| preparation and response to the 2014 ebola virus disease epidemic in nigeria-the experience of a tertiary hospital in nigeria. | the 2014 ebola virus disease (evd) outbreak elicited global attention and challenged health systems around the world, nigeria inclusive. we hereby report the preparation and response to the outbreak by a tertiary teaching hospital in bayelsa state, nigeria. | 2016 | 27788191 |
| preparedness for zika virus disease - new york city, 2016. | the rapid spread of zika virus across the world health organization's region of the americas has had a direct effect on the u.s. health care delivery system. hospitals in new york city (nyc) have been implementing prevention and response efforts consistent with cdc guidance. as of september 21, 2016, a total of 715 cases of laboratory-confirmed zika virus disease had been diagnosed in new york state among travelers who returned from affected areas, their sexual contacts, or infants infected in u ... | 2016 | 27787490 |
| elucidation of the cellular interactome of ebola virus nucleoprotein and identification of therapeutic targets. | ebola virus (ebov) infection results in severe disease and in some cases lethal hemorrhagic fever. the infection is directed by seven viral genes that encode nine viral proteins. by definition, viruses are obligate intracellular parasites and require aspects of host cell biology in order to replicate their genetic material, assemble new virus particles, and subvert host cell antiviral responses. currently licensed antivirals are targeted against viral proteins to inhibit their function. however, ... | 2016 | 27786485 |
| the impact of active surveillance and health education on an ebola virus disease cluster - kono district, sierra leone, 2014-2015. | during december 2014-february 2015, an ebola outbreak in a village in kono district, sierra leone, began following unsafe funeral practices after the death of a person later confirmed to be infected with ebola virus. in response, disease surveillance officers and community health workers, in collaboration with local leadership and international partners, conducted 1 day of active surveillance and health education for all households in the village followed by ongoing outreach. this study investig ... | 2016 | 27784275 |
| modelling ebola virus dynamics: implications for therapy. | ebola virus (ebov) causes a severe, often fatal ebola virus disease (evd), for which no approved antivirals exist. recently, some promising anti-ebov drugs, which are experimentally potent in animal models, have been developed. however, because the quantitative dynamics of ebov replication in humans is uncertain, it remains unclear how much antiviral suppression of viral replication affects evd outcome in patients. here, we developed a novel mathematical model to quantitatively analyse human vir ... | 2016 | 27743917 |
| quantifying the risk of nosocomial infection within ebola holding units: a retrospective cohort study of negative patients discharged from five ebola holding units in western area, sierra leone. | a central pillar in the response to the 2014 ebola virus disease (evd) epidemic in sierra leone was the role of ebola holding units (ehus). these units isolated patients meeting a suspect case definition, tested them for evd, initiated appropriate early treatment and discharged negative patients to onward inpatient care or home. positive patients were referred to ebola treatment centres. we aimed to estimate the risk of nosocomial transmission within these ehus. | 2017 | 27782349 |
| bibliometrics of global ebola virus disease research as seen through science citation index expanded during 1987-2015. | | 2016 | 27773777 |
| intra-host dynamics of ebola virus during 2014. | since 2013, west africa has encountered the largest ebola virus (ebov) disease outbreak on record, and sierra leone is the worst-affected country, with nearly half of the infections. by means of next-generation sequencing and phylogeographic analysis, the epidemiology and transmission of ebov have been well elucidated. however, the intra-host dynamics that mainly reflect viral-host interactions still need to be studied. here, we show a total of 710 intra-host single nucleotide variations (isnvs) ... | 2016 | 27595345 |
| effects of the west africa ebola virus disease on health-care utilization - a systematic review. | significant efforts were invested in halting the recent ebola virus disease outbreak in west africa. now, studies are emerging on the magnitude of the indirect health effects of the outbreak in the affected countries, and the aim of this study is to systematically assess the results of these publications. the methodology for this review adhered to the prisma guidelines for systematic reviews. a total of 3354 articles were identified for screening, and while 117 articles were read in full, 22 stu ... | 2016 | 27777926 |
| lassa and ebola virus inhibitors identified using minigenome and recombinant virus reporter systems. | lassa virus (lasv) and ebola virus (ebov) infections are important global health issues resulting in significant morbidity and mortality. while several promising drug and vaccine trials for ebov are ongoing, options for lasv infection are currently limited to ribavirin treatment. a major factor impeding the development of antiviral compounds to treat these infections is the need to manipulate the virus under bsl-4 containment, limiting research to a few institutes worldwide. here we describe the ... | 2016 | 27771389 |
| a one-year effective reproduction number of the 2014-2015 ebola outbreaks in the widespread west african countries and quantitative evaluation of air travel restriction measure. | the 2014-2015 ebola outbreak in west africa is the largest and longest ebola virus disease (evd) outbreak in the history, and the virus has escaped across countries and continents via air travel in this outbreak. | 2017 | 27555282 |
| quarantine for zika virus? where is the science? | in january 2016, the world health organization warned that zika virus is "spreading explosively" in the americas and that up to 4 million infections could be present worldwide within a year. soon thereafter, some politicians and authors publicly advocated for quarantine of travelers returning from regions where mosquitoes carrying zika virus are prevalent. the public health tool of quarantine can be used to prevent the spread of infection by restricting the movement of persons who have been expo ... | 2016 | 27032458 |
| isolation of tioman virus from pteropus giganteus bat in north-east region of india. | bat-borne viral diseases are a major public health concern among newly emerging infectious diseases which includes severe acute respiratory syndrome, nipah, marburg and ebola virus disease. during the survey for nipah virus among bats at north-east region of india; tioman virus (tiov), a new member of the paramyxoviridae family was isolated from tissues of pteropus giganteus bats for the first time in india. this isolate was identified and confirmed by rt-pcr, sequence analysis and electron micr ... | 2016 | 27619056 |
| the 2014 ebola virus outbreak in west africa highlights no evidence of rapid evolution or adaptation to humans. | following its immergence in december 2013, the recent zaire ebola virus (ebov) outbreak in west africa has spread and persisted for more than two years, making it the largest ebov epidemic in both scale and geographical region to date. in this study, a total of 726 glycoprotein (gp) gene sequences of the ebov full-length genome obtained from west africa from the 2014 outbreak, combined with 30 from earlier outbreaks between 1976 and 2008 were used to investigate the genetic divergence, evolution ... | 2016 | 27767073 |
| korean infection control nurses' knowledge and awareness of infection control against ebola virus disease. | to assess the level of knowledge and awareness of ebola virus disease infection control among infection control nurses and to identify a correlation between these factors. | 2016 | 27766760 |
| ebola vaccines in clinical trial: the promising candidates. | ebola virus disease (evd) has become a great threat to humans across the world in recent years. the 2014 ebola epidemic in west africa caused numerous deaths and attracted worldwide attentions. since no specific drugs and treatments against evd was available, vaccination was considered as the most promising and effective method of controlling this epidemic. so far, 7 vaccine candidates had been developed and evaluated through clinical trials. among them, the recombinant vesicular stomatitis viru ... | 2017 | 27764560 |
| the ebola virus protein vp40 hexamer enhances the clustering of pi(4,5)p2 lipids in the plasma membrane. | the ebola virus is a lipid-enveloped virus that obtains its lipid coat from the plasma membrane of the host cell it infects during the budding process. the ebola virus protein vp40 localizes to the inner leaflet of the plasma membrane and forms the viral matrix, which provides the major structure for the ebola virus particles. vp40 is initially a dimer that rearranges to a hexameric structure that mediates budding. vp40 hexamers and larger filaments have been shown to be stabilized by pi(4,5)p2 ... | 2016 | 27757455 |
| antiviral therapeutics for the treatment of ebola virus infection. | there have been significant developments in ebola virus therapeutics. while the efficacy of several products was evaluated in the recent west africa outbreak, a licensed treatment for ebov disease remains elusive. factors that negatively impacted the execution of clinical trials included an overall lack of world readiness to conduct clinical trials in an outbreak setting, ethical concerns limiting implementation of the randomized controlled trials in an outbreak setting, and a decline in case nu ... | 2016 | 27639220 |
| the ebola virus vp30-np interaction is a regulator of viral rna synthesis. | filoviruses are capable of causing deadly hemorrhagic fevers. all nonsegmented negative-sense rna-virus nucleocapsids are composed of a nucleoprotein (np), a phosphoprotein (vp35) and a polymerase (l). however, the vp30 rna-synthesis co-factor is unique to the filoviruses. the assembly, structure, and function of the filovirus rna replication complex remain unclear. here, we have characterized the interactions of ebola, sudan and marburg virus vp30 with np using in vitro biochemistry, structural ... | 2016 | 27755595 |