http://news.bbc.co.uk/hi/english/health/newsid_1854000/1854299.stm
Ebola discovery raises vaccine hope
Ebola
is a deadly disease
Scientists have discovered how the deadly ebola
virus attacks human cells - paving the way for a possible vaccine.
The virus is one of
the most deadly viruses known to man.
More than half of
those who become infected bleed to death.
|
People are waiting
with bated breath for a drug or vaccine
|
|
Dr Gary Nabel |
It is also highly
contagious. However, since it was first discovered in 1976 outbreaks have been
confined to central
Until now the exact
way that Ebola attacked the body was poorly understood.
But researchers from
the US National Institutes of Health, have discovered that
the virus targets tiny platforms of fat - called lipid rafts - which float on
top of the outer membrane of human cells.
The virus uses the
lipid raft as a gateway to the cells and a place to assemble new virus
particles before launching them at other cells.
Other viruses
It is a similar method
of attack to that employed by HIV, measles and flu viruses.
Dr Sina
Bavari, of the US Army Medical Research Institute,
said: "By understanding how Ebola and
The scientists made
their breakthrough by using harmless copies of the virus which had the same
shape, but no harmful internal contents.
They hope that it
might eventually be possible to use the same de-activated form of the virus to
develop a vaccine by fooling the immune system into believing it is under
attack by ebola.
It might also be
possible to treat Ebola infection by administering anti-cholesterol or anti-fungal
drugs to break up the lipid platforms, and thus deny the virus the opportunity
to spread itself.
Dr Gary Nabel, of the American Vaccine Research Centre, said:
"People are waiting with bated breath for a drug or vaccine.
"These show that
we're on the road that will get us there."
The research is
published in the Journal of Experimental Medicine.
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