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In the fight against Ebola, mapping fruit bat habitats could be one important step, says a geoinformatics researcher at Sweden’s Royal Institute of Technology. Like the Black Death that ravaged medieval Europe, the Ebola virus’ progress through remote areas of West Africa is enabled by lack of understanding about the disease, including its causes and transmission. Mapping technology however will give responders to the crisis in Africa the upper hand in stopping… Read More
Guinea has banned the sale and consumption of bats to prevent the spread of the deadly Ebola virus, its health minister has said. Bats, a local delicacy, appeared to be the “main agents” for the Ebola virus disease outbreak in the south, Rene Lamah said. 62 people have now been killed by the virus in Guinea, with suspected cases reported in neighbouring Liberia and Sierra Leone. Ebola virus is spread by close… Read More
A wildlife biologist who became severely sick after returning from a 6-week African field expedition that included handling rodents and bats and collecting their blood and tissues was found to have been infected with a novel paramyxovirus related to rubula-like viruses isolated from fruit bats, according to a separate EID report. The 25-year-old experienced a fever, malaise, headache, generalized myalgia and arthralgia, neck stiffness, and a sore throat 5 days after returning… Read More
THE OUTBREAK 