Genetic clues to Ebola outbreak discovered

Scientists have traced the spread of the Ebola virus in West Africa and obtained genetic evidence of the outbreak.

Experts at Kenema government hospital in Sierra Leone monitor the Ebola outbreak. Photo: BBC

Genetic analysis of samples revealed that the Ebola virus spread from Guinea to Sierra Leone at a funeral.

The Ebola virus is mutating and needs to be controlled quickly, US and African experts warn. However, they say there is no evidence yet that the virus is changing its behavior.

The current Ebola outbreak is the largest in history, with more than 3,000 cases. According to the World Health Organization (WHO), the number of Ebola cases is expected to exceed 20,000 before the outbreak is contained.

"We have discovered more than 300 genetic clues about what makes this outbreak different from previous ones. While we do not yet know whether these differences are related to the severity of the outbreak, by sharing this data with the research community, we hope to accelerate our understanding of this disease and support global efforts to control it," said Dr. Stephen Gire from the Broad Institute and Harvard University (USA).

Data published in the journal Science shows that the Ebola virus has made the leap from animals to humans only once during the current outbreak. This strain of Ebola has emerged in central Africa over the past 10 years, possibly through intermediate animals such as fruit bats or primates.

In this outbreak, the first case of Ebola appeared in Guinea, then the disease spread to Sierra Leone at the funeral of a traditional medicine practitioner.

Commenting on the study, Professor Jonathan Ball, a virus expert at the University of Nottingham (UK), emphasized: "It is clear that the Ebola virus is evolving. However, what is unclear is whether the changes taking place with this virus affect its behavior or not."

According to vietnamnet