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An antibody treatment successfully protected nonhuman primates against the deadly Marburg and Ravn viruses even when given five days after becoming infected, according to the latest findings of a collaborative team from The University of Texas Medical Branch at Galveston, Mapp Biopharmaceutical Inc., and Vanderbilt University. The findings are now available in Science Translational Medicine.
There are currently no vaccines or drugs approved for human use to protect against the Marburg and Ravn viruses. These two filoviruses, which are in the same virus family as Ebola, cause severe and often lethal disease in people. The average case fatality rate of Marburg virus disease since the first recognized outbreak in 1967 is 80 percent.
Monoclonal antibodies are a technology that is currently in wide use for treating autoimmune diseases and cancers. There are more than 45 monoclonal antibodies approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration and European Medicines Agency.
It's welcome news for treating the hemorrhagic fever virus, a Biosafety Level 4 agent which can liquefy your organs. The popular non-fiction work, "The Hot Zone," described its effects.
(Score: 2) by bob_super on Friday April 07 2017, @07:02PM (4 children)
It's even better news if you have read "the Hot Zone" or "Virus Hunter", both of which are pretty explicit about what happens when people's insides literally dissolve.
If I had Marburg or Ebola, I'd go looking for a gun and a single bullet ASAP.
I'm really glad that scientists are making progress against those monsters.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Friday April 07 2017, @08:10PM (3 children)
*googles ebola fatality rate* it varies from 25% to 90%. [who.int] do u hate life or what?? cheer up dude
(Score: 2) by bob_super on Friday April 07 2017, @08:58PM (2 children)
The most recent epidemic (the big one that made the news) had those low rates, surprising most specialists.
Normal Ebola death rates are closer to 90%.
Think about it in these terms: Ebola outbreaks had always been limited in scope because it kills almost everyone too efficiently to propagate.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Friday April 07 2017, @10:38PM (1 child)
shotgun to the head is 99% lethal, chance of surviving both ebola and suicide must be less than 1%. why would you do that, man??
(Score: 2) by bob_super on Friday April 07 2017, @11:00PM
Chance of drowning in your own bodily fluids as your lungs dissolve is 90%... I'll take the bullet, thanks.
Side-effects if survived are unclear an potentially nasty.
I'd give the docs until I feel so weak I can barely pull that trigger.