“Filoviruses”: a real pandemic threat? EMBO Molecular Medicine 3/26/2009High numbers of filovirus particles can be found in sweat glands and the human skin (Zaki et al, 1999), suggesting that transmission may occur through direct contact and that nursing patients and preparing bodies for burial without practicing the appropriate barrier precautions, represent an important factor contributing to the spread of the infection. However, it remains unclear how the virus enters the body upon direct contact. It has been shown that administration of filoviruses into the mouth, nose, or conjunctiva of non‐human primates resulted in infection (Jaax et al, 1996; Schou & Hansen, 2000). Therefore, it is conceivable that human infections occur through indirect contact of, for example, contaminated fingers with oral mucosa or conjunctiva. The REBOV outbreak and experimental infections carried out with ZEBOV have raised concerns that EBOV may be naturally transmitted by aerosol (Jahrling et al, 1990; Johnson et al, 1995). There is also circumstantial evidence that during the EBOV outbreak in DRC in 1995, some patients became infected through aerosol transmission (Roels et al, 1999). However, although aerosol transmission cannot be completely ruled out, the primary mode of transmission is through direct or indirect contact with an infected body and thus transmission of filoviruses is an inefficient process.
I can't find the article at the moment but dendritic cells are one of the first attacked by Ebola. Details on the location of dendritic cells:
Dendritic cells are found in tissue that has contact with the outside environment such as the over the skin (present as Langerhans cells) and in the linings of the nose, lungs, stomach and intestines. Immature forms are also found in the blood. Once activated, dendritic cells move to the lymph tissue to interact with to interact with T cells and B cells and help shape the adaptive immune response. During development, they develop branched projections called “dendrites”, which is why the cells are so named.
Bless you for your reply. I realized only later that I needed to use diiferent search terms ( and a virology dictionary ).
That ZEbola is one devious as well as lethal rascal.