Works Cited
Article. N.p.: n.p., n.d. Ebola Hemorrhagic Fever. Web. 3 Nov. 2014. <http://www.austincc.edu/microbio/2421b/eb.htm>. This article is very relevant and accurate because it explains many aspects of the Ebola virus. This paper describes the shape of the virus itself and how it functions. The five different strains of the virus are also mentioned and the species that they affect. The natural host of the virus is still unknown, but is most likely in or near a tropical rainforest in central Africa. The signs and symptoms of the virus are explained in great detail. When the virus is present it causes the liver to produce more aspartate aminotransferase and alanine aminotransferase which can be detected through a blood test. The virus attacks endothelial cells and eventually causes internal bleeding. The virus can also cause kidney and liver failure.
BBC. BBC, 1 Dec. 2014. Web. 2 Dec. 2014. <http://www.bbc.com/news/world-africa-30270997>.
Benson, Rebecca. “Ebola Hemorrhagic Fever.” Austin Community College District. N.p., n.d. Web. 23 Nov. 2014. <http://www.austincc.edu/microbio/2421b/eb.htm>. This article provides very accurate information and explains many aspects of the virus. It explains that in addition to hindering the body’s ability to repair organs, the virus attacks the liver and kidneys and can lead to death.The virus causes increased ALT and AST levels in the blood. These levels indicate that the liver is damaged and that the body is trying to repair it. Benson also talks about the five different types of the Ebola virus and their impact in humans and animals. She also goes over the symptoms of the virus and the characteristics of it.
Berr, Jonathan. “A Closer Look at the Economics of Ebola.” CBS News. CBS, 27 Oct. 2014. Web. 23 Nov. 2014. <http://www.cbsnews.com/news/a-closer-look-at-the-economics-of-ebola/>. This article is a reliable sources because it was written by a CBS news writer. It is still relevant because it was only published a month ago. This article states that the US has given 1.7 million dollars to Ghana’s government to help fight the disease. It also states that the price of cocoa has increased 23 percent, which impacts every country around the world.
The Big Story. N.p., 28 Aug. 2014. Web. 3 Nov. 2014. <http://bigstory.ap.org/article/scientists-dig-ebolas-deadly-dna-clues>. This article was published about two months so the number of deaths from Ebola is no longer accurate, but the rest of the information is still current and relevant. Many samples of the virus have genetically coded and over 300 mutations have been found. Researches have found 50 different points where the virus has mutated, but it only contains 7 genes. It is still unknown what these mutations mean and how it will change again in the future. This article states that in May it was thought that the outbreak was almost under control, but after the death of a doctor who was treating patients many others contracted the virus and died. They most likely contracted the virus by cleaning or handling the body or by attending the funeral. All of these people then continued the spreed of the virus, which caused the outbreak to grow even more and cause it to not be controlled.
“Blood Vessels and Endothelial Cells.” NCBI. N.p., 2002. Web. 15 Oct. 2014. <http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK26848/>. The information I found on this website is from a section in the Molecular Biology of the Cell. 4th edition book. The book was published in 2002, but due to the fact that the information in it is about the body it is still relevant. From this site I learned that endothelium is the a thin layer of cells that line the interior surface of blood and lymphatic vessels. Endothelial cells in direct contact with blood are called vascular endothelial cells, but if they are in direct contact with lymph they are called lymphatic endothelial cells. Both of these cells have specific functions and target areas. In general, endothelial cells help form new blood vessels, repair damaged or diseased organs, and control blood clotting. If endothelial cells are damaged then the bodies ability to stay healthy is greatly inhibited.
Ebola Crisis: Sierra Leone farmers urged back to work. BBC. N.p., 15 Oct. 2014. Web. 22 Oct. 2014. <http://www.bbc.com/news/world-29638427>. This video came out in October shorty after the Ebola outbreak grew exponentially worse. Fear and panic struck many farmers when the virus started to threaten their crops and the food security of their country. Many farmers have deserted their fields which is causing a decrease in food produced. This threatens food warehouses which could soon become completely empty. This problem is prevalent in Sierra Leone, Guinea, and Liberia where many farmers have left their crops to rot out of fear that they will contract the virus. Almost half of the farmers in Sierra Leone have left their farms in the worst affects areas. Since so many farms are unattended some areas of West Africa are experiencing food shortages. The governments of these countries are trying to convince farmers to return and have had some success. This is still not enough to ensure the food security in these countries. Many families are now struggling to feed their children.
Ebola: How does the virus attack human cells? BBC News. N.p., 2 Oct. 2014. Web. 10 Oct. 2014. <http://www.bbc.com/news/health-29457668>. The video that I watched came out on October 14th, 2014 and is used to inform the public about Ebola. Although the video is only 49 seconds long it explains how Ebola moves through the bloodstream. Once a person has contracted the virus it hijacks the host’s healthy cells, damaging them, and then produces its own cells very quickly. The virus infects the host’s endothelial cells, which line the blood vessels, causing the victim to internally bleed.
Ebola Is Rapidly Mutating As It Spreads Across West Africa. NPR, 28 Aug. 2014. Web. 24 Oct. 2014. <http://www.npr.org/blogs/goatsandsoda/2014/08/28/343734184/ebola-is-rapidly-mutating-as-it-spreads-across-west-africa>. This informational audio podcast explains in detail how the Ebola virus is mutating. The outbreak started when one human contracted the virus from an animal. It is now only being spread through human to human contact. Some doctors say that eating bushmeat is very dangerous, but some scientists say that eating it is not harmful. Bushmeat is one of West Africans main source of food, so if they can no longer eat it then they will face hunger problems. The virus is mutating at a rate that is twice as fast as the rate in fruit bats. When the 99 samples of the virus were sent to Boston and the genomes were found scientists had discovered that the virus had mutated 250 times.
Ebola Outbreak in West Africa. CSIS, n.d. Web. 19 Oct. 2014. This video interview tells the public that this is not the first Ebola outbreak, it is actually the 11th or 12th since the mid 1970’s. This outbreak is the worst by far, starting in Guinea and then jumping to two neighboring countries. Dr. Morrison reveals that the scale and scope of the outbreak is 2-3 times the level we have ever seen because it is multi-country region-wide. As of right now we are not able to control the outbreak. Part of this is due to the poor health structures and the poor government and leadership systems. There are other factors making containment difficult such as the proximity of the jungle to the densely populated urban areas. Since pockets of West Africa do not have the capacity to prevent, detect, and respond effectively to infectious diseases the infection rate is very high.
Dr. Morrison ended his interest by saying that Ebola can be contained but it won’t happen overnight. In order to contain it we need to separate the dying and the ill and use contact tracing. This means that we need to monitor anyone who came in or could have come in contact with the virus and watch them closely. Since it is highly fatal, and it doesn’t have a cure or a vaccine people need to be informed on how to protect themselves
Goldsmith, Connie. Invisible Invaders: Dangerous Infectious Diseases. Minneapolis: Twenty-First Century, 2006. Print. Although this book was published in 2006 the information it contains is still relevant. A section of this book contains information about hemorrhagic fevers and how they work. Ebola is mentioned in the book when it explains that the virus was named after the Ebola River in the Democratic Republic of the Congo where the virus was first discovered. From this booked I learned that scientists do not know where the virus lives between outbreaks, but they do know that is fatal to monkeys and primates as well as humans. This book provided me with an important fact that I have not seen anywhere else; in 2005 scientists created a filovirus vaccine for monkeys, which means that they are closer to developing a vaccine for humans.
Hamilton, Richard. “Ebola Crisis: The Economic Impact.” BBC. BBC, 20 Aug. 2014. Web. 21 Oct. 2014. <http://www.bbc.com/news/business-28865434>. This article is very recent and is used to provide information about the economic impact Ebola has on Sierra Leone, Guinea, and Liberia. Since the outbreak Sierra Leone’s economy has deflated by 33 percent with most of that coming from the agricultural section taking the biggest blow. About 66 percent of the people in Sierra Leone are farms who can no longer sell their products because roadblocks have been set up by police and military in hopes to contain the virus. These roadblocks inhibit the flow of farmers, laborers, supplies, and food. Government officials said that planting season is coming up, but since many farmers have fled they will suffering food shortages and inflation of the national currency as well as a decrease in foreign exchange. Since the outbreak tourism has gone down which has lead to unemployment in hotels. Guinea and Liberia will not suffer as much as Sierra Leone, but their gross domestic product number with decrease. All three of these countries were poor to begin with, but the Ebola outbreak will most likely lead cause them to suffer even more from poverty.
Harmon, Katherine. “Genes from Ebola Virus Family Found in Human Genome.” Scientific American. N.p., 30 July 2010. Web. 3 Nov. 2014. <http://www.scientificamerican.com/article/virus-genes-human-genome/>. Although this article is four years old it still contains information that is relevant. This article talks about the similarity of filoviruses and bornaviruses like Ebola and Marburg pathogens and genes that humans contain. Some of these genes are the same, but is unknown why we have them.
How Ebola survivors’ blood is saving lives. BBC. N.p., 20 Oct. 2014. Web. 20 Oct. 2014. <http://www.bbc.com/news/health-29689537>. The video clip that I watched was very short, but it explained that survivors of Ebola have antibodies that can protect them from the disease for up to ten years. Their blood is now being used to treat infected patients so that they can obtain the antibodies to help fight off the virus. Although survivors have these antibodies it is unknown if they can protect someone from a different strain of Ebola or if it will even prevent them from getting the same strain again.
Kim, Susan. “How Fear of Ebola Could Impact the US Economy.” ABC News. ABC, 3 Oct. 2014. Web. 23 Nov. 2014. <http://abcnews.go.com/Business/fear-ebola-impact-us-economy/story?id=25915737>. This article is still relevant and it is reliable because it was published by ABC News. This article explains how some families in Texas withheld their children from school when there was an Ebola case there. This article also states that tourism has decreased as well as the amount of airline tickets sold.
Oldstone, Michael B. A. Viruses, Plagues, and History. New York: Oxford UP, 1998. Print. This book was published six years ago so it does not contain any information on the current Ebola outbreak, but it does provide a general overview of the outbreaks in the past. The virus was first discovered in West Africa and can be transmitted through monkey and ape meat. It is unknown how these animals contract the virus. In addition to the information about Ebola, this book provides information about other hemorrhagic fevers such as Lassa Fever and Hantavirus. The author explains the stages of progression for each of these diseases and how they affect the body. This book also provides information about HIV and how it affects the body. There is some correlation between Ebola and HIV since they both wipe out or weaken blood cells.
Rafael. “How the Ebola Virus Affects the Human Body.” Ed. Paul Arnold. Bright Hub. N.p., 8 Oct. 2014. Web. 15 Oct. 2014. <http://www.brighthub.com/science/genetics/articles/57205.aspx>. This article is used to explain to the public how Ebola impacts the human body. It is current article since it was published at the beginning of October this year. From this article I learned that Ebola is a systemic disease, meaning that attacks every organ and tissue in the human body except for the skeletal system and the skeletal muscles. Ebola releases a specific protein that dampens the immune systems ability to respond and fight off illnesses. The virus also attacks connective tissue and multiples in collagen, which is the tissue that holds organs in place, and then digests the tissue. Ebola can also cause blood clots in the bloodstream that slow down blood flow. If the clots are big enough then they can rupture the vessel causing internal bleeding.
University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine. “How Ebola Virus Avoids The Immune System.” ScienceDaily. ScienceDaily, 30 January 2009. <www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/01/090127152838.htm>. Although it was published in 2009, the article explains the way in which the virus behaves and informs the public how it works. The virus inhibits tetherin production in the body so that it can take over and produce its own cells in the body. Tetherin is one of the immune systems responses to fight off viral infections, so when cells no longer produce this the body cannot fights off infections. A virus, such as Ebola, can then take over the cells and start producing more of its cells. The virus spreads to other regions of the body this way until it takes over every organ and then kills its host.
WebMD Asks about Ebola. WebMD. N.p., n.d. Web. 4 Nov. 2014. <http://www.webmd.com/a-to-z-guides/fauci-on-ebola?chpt=4>. This video is very relevant and somewhat current. In this video the possible mutations of Ebola are mentioned. In previous cases Ebola has not mutated to become airborne and it is unlikely that it will become airborne in this outbreak. Ebola is an RNA virus and it is unheard of that an RNA virus can mutate to completely change its transmissibility. The doctor in this video said that if an Ebola patient sneezes or coughs when they are in the early stages of the virus will not be spreading the disease since the virus has yet to penetrate the fluid in the lungs. In the advanced or terminal stages of the virus there is a chance that it could have entered the lung fluid meaning that if a patient coughs or sneezes and the fluid lands on someone they are at risk of contracting the virus if they are not properly protected.
Researchers have created two vaccines; one for monkeys and one for humans. These vaccines are now being tested and it is likely that results will be determined at some point in November. If there is a positive result with the experimental vaccine more tests will done with thousands of infected people in West Africa. If this drug does work then it will distributed and given out to many countries. This is all assuming that the drug will work.
Article. N.p.: n.p., n.d. Ebola Hemorrhagic Fever. Web. 3 Nov. 2014. <http://www.austincc.edu/microbio/2421b/eb.htm>. This article is very relevant and accurate because it explains many aspects of the Ebola virus. This paper describes the shape of the virus itself and how it functions. The five different strains of the virus are also mentioned and the species that they affect. The natural host of the virus is still unknown, but is most likely in or near a tropical rainforest in central Africa. The signs and symptoms of the virus are explained in great detail. When the virus is present it causes the liver to produce more aspartate aminotransferase and alanine aminotransferase which can be detected through a blood test. The virus attacks endothelial cells and eventually causes internal bleeding. The virus can also cause kidney and liver failure.
BBC. BBC, 1 Dec. 2014. Web. 2 Dec. 2014. <http://www.bbc.com/news/world-africa-30270997>.
Benson, Rebecca. “Ebola Hemorrhagic Fever.” Austin Community College District. N.p., n.d. Web. 23 Nov. 2014. <http://www.austincc.edu/microbio/2421b/eb.htm>. This article provides very accurate information and explains many aspects of the virus. It explains that in addition to hindering the body’s ability to repair organs, the virus attacks the liver and kidneys and can lead to death.The virus causes increased ALT and AST levels in the blood. These levels indicate that the liver is damaged and that the body is trying to repair it. Benson also talks about the five different types of the Ebola virus and their impact in humans and animals. She also goes over the symptoms of the virus and the characteristics of it.
Berr, Jonathan. “A Closer Look at the Economics of Ebola.” CBS News. CBS, 27 Oct. 2014. Web. 23 Nov. 2014. <http://www.cbsnews.com/news/a-closer-look-at-the-economics-of-ebola/>. This article is a reliable sources because it was written by a CBS news writer. It is still relevant because it was only published a month ago. This article states that the US has given 1.7 million dollars to Ghana’s government to help fight the disease. It also states that the price of cocoa has increased 23 percent, which impacts every country around the world.
The Big Story. N.p., 28 Aug. 2014. Web. 3 Nov. 2014. <http://bigstory.ap.org/article/scientists-dig-ebolas-deadly-dna-clues>. This article was published about two months so the number of deaths from Ebola is no longer accurate, but the rest of the information is still current and relevant. Many samples of the virus have genetically coded and over 300 mutations have been found. Researches have found 50 different points where the virus has mutated, but it only contains 7 genes. It is still unknown what these mutations mean and how it will change again in the future. This article states that in May it was thought that the outbreak was almost under control, but after the death of a doctor who was treating patients many others contracted the virus and died. They most likely contracted the virus by cleaning or handling the body or by attending the funeral. All of these people then continued the spreed of the virus, which caused the outbreak to grow even more and cause it to not be controlled.
“Blood Vessels and Endothelial Cells.” NCBI. N.p., 2002. Web. 15 Oct. 2014. <http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK26848/>. The information I found on this website is from a section in the Molecular Biology of the Cell. 4th edition book. The book was published in 2002, but due to the fact that the information in it is about the body it is still relevant. From this site I learned that endothelium is the a thin layer of cells that line the interior surface of blood and lymphatic vessels. Endothelial cells in direct contact with blood are called vascular endothelial cells, but if they are in direct contact with lymph they are called lymphatic endothelial cells. Both of these cells have specific functions and target areas. In general, endothelial cells help form new blood vessels, repair damaged or diseased organs, and control blood clotting. If endothelial cells are damaged then the bodies ability to stay healthy is greatly inhibited.
Ebola Crisis: Sierra Leone farmers urged back to work. BBC. N.p., 15 Oct. 2014. Web. 22 Oct. 2014. <http://www.bbc.com/news/world-29638427>. This video came out in October shorty after the Ebola outbreak grew exponentially worse. Fear and panic struck many farmers when the virus started to threaten their crops and the food security of their country. Many farmers have deserted their fields which is causing a decrease in food produced. This threatens food warehouses which could soon become completely empty. This problem is prevalent in Sierra Leone, Guinea, and Liberia where many farmers have left their crops to rot out of fear that they will contract the virus. Almost half of the farmers in Sierra Leone have left their farms in the worst affects areas. Since so many farms are unattended some areas of West Africa are experiencing food shortages. The governments of these countries are trying to convince farmers to return and have had some success. This is still not enough to ensure the food security in these countries. Many families are now struggling to feed their children.
Ebola: How does the virus attack human cells? BBC News. N.p., 2 Oct. 2014. Web. 10 Oct. 2014. <http://www.bbc.com/news/health-29457668>. The video that I watched came out on October 14th, 2014 and is used to inform the public about Ebola. Although the video is only 49 seconds long it explains how Ebola moves through the bloodstream. Once a person has contracted the virus it hijacks the host’s healthy cells, damaging them, and then produces its own cells very quickly. The virus infects the host’s endothelial cells, which line the blood vessels, causing the victim to internally bleed.
Ebola Is Rapidly Mutating As It Spreads Across West Africa. NPR, 28 Aug. 2014. Web. 24 Oct. 2014. <http://www.npr.org/blogs/goatsandsoda/2014/08/28/343734184/ebola-is-rapidly-mutating-as-it-spreads-across-west-africa>. This informational audio podcast explains in detail how the Ebola virus is mutating. The outbreak started when one human contracted the virus from an animal. It is now only being spread through human to human contact. Some doctors say that eating bushmeat is very dangerous, but some scientists say that eating it is not harmful. Bushmeat is one of West Africans main source of food, so if they can no longer eat it then they will face hunger problems. The virus is mutating at a rate that is twice as fast as the rate in fruit bats. When the 99 samples of the virus were sent to Boston and the genomes were found scientists had discovered that the virus had mutated 250 times.
Ebola Outbreak in West Africa. CSIS, n.d. Web. 19 Oct. 2014. This video interview tells the public that this is not the first Ebola outbreak, it is actually the 11th or 12th since the mid 1970’s. This outbreak is the worst by far, starting in Guinea and then jumping to two neighboring countries. Dr. Morrison reveals that the scale and scope of the outbreak is 2-3 times the level we have ever seen because it is multi-country region-wide. As of right now we are not able to control the outbreak. Part of this is due to the poor health structures and the poor government and leadership systems. There are other factors making containment difficult such as the proximity of the jungle to the densely populated urban areas. Since pockets of West Africa do not have the capacity to prevent, detect, and respond effectively to infectious diseases the infection rate is very high.
Dr. Morrison ended his interest by saying that Ebola can be contained but it won’t happen overnight. In order to contain it we need to separate the dying and the ill and use contact tracing. This means that we need to monitor anyone who came in or could have come in contact with the virus and watch them closely. Since it is highly fatal, and it doesn’t have a cure or a vaccine people need to be informed on how to protect themselves
Goldsmith, Connie. Invisible Invaders: Dangerous Infectious Diseases. Minneapolis: Twenty-First Century, 2006. Print. Although this book was published in 2006 the information it contains is still relevant. A section of this book contains information about hemorrhagic fevers and how they work. Ebola is mentioned in the book when it explains that the virus was named after the Ebola River in the Democratic Republic of the Congo where the virus was first discovered. From this booked I learned that scientists do not know where the virus lives between outbreaks, but they do know that is fatal to monkeys and primates as well as humans. This book provided me with an important fact that I have not seen anywhere else; in 2005 scientists created a filovirus vaccine for monkeys, which means that they are closer to developing a vaccine for humans.
Hamilton, Richard. “Ebola Crisis: The Economic Impact.” BBC. BBC, 20 Aug. 2014. Web. 21 Oct. 2014. <http://www.bbc.com/news/business-28865434>. This article is very recent and is used to provide information about the economic impact Ebola has on Sierra Leone, Guinea, and Liberia. Since the outbreak Sierra Leone’s economy has deflated by 33 percent with most of that coming from the agricultural section taking the biggest blow. About 66 percent of the people in Sierra Leone are farms who can no longer sell their products because roadblocks have been set up by police and military in hopes to contain the virus. These roadblocks inhibit the flow of farmers, laborers, supplies, and food. Government officials said that planting season is coming up, but since many farmers have fled they will suffering food shortages and inflation of the national currency as well as a decrease in foreign exchange. Since the outbreak tourism has gone down which has lead to unemployment in hotels. Guinea and Liberia will not suffer as much as Sierra Leone, but their gross domestic product number with decrease. All three of these countries were poor to begin with, but the Ebola outbreak will most likely lead cause them to suffer even more from poverty.
Harmon, Katherine. “Genes from Ebola Virus Family Found in Human Genome.” Scientific American. N.p., 30 July 2010. Web. 3 Nov. 2014. <http://www.scientificamerican.com/article/virus-genes-human-genome/>. Although this article is four years old it still contains information that is relevant. This article talks about the similarity of filoviruses and bornaviruses like Ebola and Marburg pathogens and genes that humans contain. Some of these genes are the same, but is unknown why we have them.
How Ebola survivors’ blood is saving lives. BBC. N.p., 20 Oct. 2014. Web. 20 Oct. 2014. <http://www.bbc.com/news/health-29689537>. The video clip that I watched was very short, but it explained that survivors of Ebola have antibodies that can protect them from the disease for up to ten years. Their blood is now being used to treat infected patients so that they can obtain the antibodies to help fight off the virus. Although survivors have these antibodies it is unknown if they can protect someone from a different strain of Ebola or if it will even prevent them from getting the same strain again.
Kim, Susan. “How Fear of Ebola Could Impact the US Economy.” ABC News. ABC, 3 Oct. 2014. Web. 23 Nov. 2014. <http://abcnews.go.com/Business/fear-ebola-impact-us-economy/story?id=25915737>. This article is still relevant and it is reliable because it was published by ABC News. This article explains how some families in Texas withheld their children from school when there was an Ebola case there. This article also states that tourism has decreased as well as the amount of airline tickets sold.
Oldstone, Michael B. A. Viruses, Plagues, and History. New York: Oxford UP, 1998. Print. This book was published six years ago so it does not contain any information on the current Ebola outbreak, but it does provide a general overview of the outbreaks in the past. The virus was first discovered in West Africa and can be transmitted through monkey and ape meat. It is unknown how these animals contract the virus. In addition to the information about Ebola, this book provides information about other hemorrhagic fevers such as Lassa Fever and Hantavirus. The author explains the stages of progression for each of these diseases and how they affect the body. This book also provides information about HIV and how it affects the body. There is some correlation between Ebola and HIV since they both wipe out or weaken blood cells.
Rafael. “How the Ebola Virus Affects the Human Body.” Ed. Paul Arnold. Bright Hub. N.p., 8 Oct. 2014. Web. 15 Oct. 2014. <http://www.brighthub.com/science/genetics/articles/57205.aspx>. This article is used to explain to the public how Ebola impacts the human body. It is current article since it was published at the beginning of October this year. From this article I learned that Ebola is a systemic disease, meaning that attacks every organ and tissue in the human body except for the skeletal system and the skeletal muscles. Ebola releases a specific protein that dampens the immune systems ability to respond and fight off illnesses. The virus also attacks connective tissue and multiples in collagen, which is the tissue that holds organs in place, and then digests the tissue. Ebola can also cause blood clots in the bloodstream that slow down blood flow. If the clots are big enough then they can rupture the vessel causing internal bleeding.
University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine. “How Ebola Virus Avoids The Immune System.” ScienceDaily. ScienceDaily, 30 January 2009. <www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/01/090127152838.htm>. Although it was published in 2009, the article explains the way in which the virus behaves and informs the public how it works. The virus inhibits tetherin production in the body so that it can take over and produce its own cells in the body. Tetherin is one of the immune systems responses to fight off viral infections, so when cells no longer produce this the body cannot fights off infections. A virus, such as Ebola, can then take over the cells and start producing more of its cells. The virus spreads to other regions of the body this way until it takes over every organ and then kills its host.
WebMD Asks about Ebola. WebMD. N.p., n.d. Web. 4 Nov. 2014. <http://www.webmd.com/a-to-z-guides/fauci-on-ebola?chpt=4>. This video is very relevant and somewhat current. In this video the possible mutations of Ebola are mentioned. In previous cases Ebola has not mutated to become airborne and it is unlikely that it will become airborne in this outbreak. Ebola is an RNA virus and it is unheard of that an RNA virus can mutate to completely change its transmissibility. The doctor in this video said that if an Ebola patient sneezes or coughs when they are in the early stages of the virus will not be spreading the disease since the virus has yet to penetrate the fluid in the lungs. In the advanced or terminal stages of the virus there is a chance that it could have entered the lung fluid meaning that if a patient coughs or sneezes and the fluid lands on someone they are at risk of contracting the virus if they are not properly protected.
Researchers have created two vaccines; one for monkeys and one for humans. These vaccines are now being tested and it is likely that results will be determined at some point in November. If there is a positive result with the experimental vaccine more tests will done with thousands of infected people in West Africa. If this drug does work then it will distributed and given out to many countries. This is all assuming that the drug will work.