Could YOU be immune to Ebola? Scientists claim some are naturally protected from the virus

Daily Mail ^ | 10/16/2014 | Lizzie Parry

[SeekAndFind]

• Experts in the US say a study into a past Ebola outbreak found 71% of people who had close contact with a victim and tested positive never fell ill
• Another showed 46% who came into close contact and did not get sick had evidence of infection with the Ebola virus
• Team at universities of Texas and Florida believe the virus is silently immunising a significant portion of the West African population
• If they can be identified it could be vital in helping stop the spread of disease
• They could be recruited as health workers to care for the sick
• Natural immunity could mean they can offer blood transfusions as treatment
• Dr Steve Bellan said: 'We might not have to wait until we have a vaccine to use immune individuals to reduce spread of the disease'
• The current outbreak has killed 4,493 people, infecting 8,997, the WHO said

Large swathes of the West African population may be immune to the deadly Ebola virus, ravaging the region.

The current outbreak, the worst on record since the virus was discovered in 1976, has claimed the lives of 4,493 people, infecting 8,997, the World Health Organisation said yesterday.

But a team of scientists in the US believe the Ebola virus may be silently immunising a significant portion of the population, who never fall ill or infect others, protecting them from future infection.

These people will never show the tell-take signs of the disease, the high fever, headaches and flu-like symptoms.

[MeganC]

I don’t know why, but the timing of this conveniently miraculous story smells funny to me.

[djf]

I have believed this for quite a while.

[SeekAndFind]

We seem to have reached a point where any good or calming news are met with skepticism or cynicism....

I wonder who we can blame for that...

[catnipman]

You know, that got me to thinking they need to run an experiment to prove that hypothesis. They should expose everyone in D.C. to Ebola and then see how many survive based on natural immunity alone.

[Revel]

My guess would be however that during initial infection of a person who is immune that they may be carriers of disease who are capable of passing it on to someone who is not immune.

Since this is the case with dogs then why would it be different for people.

[djf]

That is the scariest situation.

Instead of “Typhoid Mary” we get an “Ebola Bob” or somesuch...

[MeganC]

“If you like your doctor you can keep your doctor.”

[steve86]

71% of people who had close contact with a victim and tested positive never fell ill

I could believe 7.1%.

[MrEdd]

Actually, everyone who insists there is a large immune population knows this because they are part of it.
Therefore it is imperative that the be put to work caring for the diseased immediately.

[thackney]

[The Great RJ]

There have been studies of the Bubonic plague of 1666 that show there were also some people who never contracted the plague despite being in direct contact with plague victims. Tracing their descendents it was found they had a unique genetic marker that apparently gave them immunity. That said I would not want to find out if I had a similar immunity to Ebola.

[Veto!]

Immune systems can be quite different in different people. My sibling catches flu and all kinds of other stuff, I never catch any of it. Well, I did have a bad case of flu one time, the one year I got a flu shot.

OTOH, my system overreacts to most prescription drugs. All “doses” are overdoses for me. My dentist knows that 1/4 amount of anesthetic is all it takes, even for a root canal.

Biogenetic testing is beginning to be available. You can have your blood tested to determine which medications are good and bad for your system.

In the case of Ebola, some sort of biogenetic testing will surely provide good answers to apparent immunity. OTOH, ebola is a very enterprising virus, ready and able to mutate when threatened. Can we outwit it?

[Gadsden1st]

When I was a young tyke, I was catching in a neighborhood game of baseball. I got too close when my sister took a swing at a high pitch and she hit me in the neck with the BAT! I could hardly breath or swallow. Almost died!

I’m thinking that encounter with a BAT may have made me immune to Ebola.

[SeekAndFind]

SOURCE

Research suggests that people can pick up the virus from the faeces or urine of fruit bats; or by eating infected “bush meat” – usually monkeys that have already been infected. “Some traditional burial customs, whereby all mourners touch the body, also causes the virus to spread, because the virus may be on the skin,”

[Sir Napsalot]

Your first point is correct. But ‘Since this is the case with dogs’ is not true.

[Sir Napsalot]

Not develop symptoms does not equate to ‘not carrying virus’.

[mad_as_he$$]

This is not news or new. No one virus can wipe out mankind due to genetic variation.

[Sir Napsalot]

At the end of the article is this -

“The scientists’ published their thoughts in a letter which appeared in The Lancet medical journal on Tuesday.”

I think this is an outright attempt to gain research funds.

[Revel]

Nope. Totally true with dogs. They are not symptomatic, but can carry and transmit the virus.

http://www.breitbart.com/Breitbart-Texas/2014/10/13/Ebola-Patients-Dog-May-be-Carrying-the-Deadly-Virus