Most people in this generation first heard about ebola a few years back when it was all over the news for a recent outbreak that affected many people. The Ebola Virus is one of the most dangerous and deadly viruses there is. Ebola is a rare and deadly disease that is caused by infection from a strain from the Ebola virus. Ebola looks like a piece of string that is curled up at the ends. The virus attacks all different varieties of cells, and causes both internal and external bleeding. It is transmitted to people from wild animals, and contact of blood and body fluids from the infected. There is vaccine for Ebola. According to the CDC the ebola virus, “Previously known as Ebola hemorrhagic fever, is a rare and deadly disease caused by infection with one of the Ebola virus species. Ebola can cause disease in humans and nonhuman primates (monkeys, gorillas, and chimpanzees).” It is caused by infection with a virus of the family, Filoviridae. There are five identified Ebola virus species, four of which are known to cause disease in humans. The fifth virus is known to have caused disease in nonhuman primate. Ebola was first discovered in 1976 near the Ebola River in what is now the Democratic Republic of the Congo. The virus is found in multiple African countries. The host of Ebola virus is unknown, but, researchers believe that the virus is animal-borne and that bats are the most likely the reason. The first infection with the ebola virus in a natural is still unknown. Ebola virus is spread only through direct contact, which can be from contact broken skin or mucous membranes through the eyes, nose, or mouth. Also through blood or body fluids including, saliva, sweat, feces, vomit, breast milk, saliva, and semen of a person who is infected with the virus themselves. It can also be transmitted trough the transfer of animals. According to “LifeScience”, and the CDC, “Symptoms may appear two to 21 days after exposure to the Ebola virus. On average, however, symptoms appear within eight to 10 days. At first, Ebola symptoms seem like those of many other viruses. The patient will usually experience the following symptoms: A fever greater than 101.5 degrees Fahrenheit, Muscle pain, Severe headache, Weakness, Diarrhea, Vomiting, Abdominal pain. Some patients also bleed from the nose and mouth. This is called hemorrhagic syndrome and usually occurs only in the late stages of the disease. Typically, the Ebola virus causes hemorrhagic syndrome in 30 to 50 percent of patients. Other symptoms that occur in advanced stages include rash and symptoms of impaired kidney and liver function, such as blood in the stool.” This shows how common the symptoms start off, but how severe they get over time. Ebola can mutate at a very fast rate. The first outbreak had mutated from a virus that only infected monkeys to an airborne version that infected humans as well. The viruses infection starts as a common cold then hits the blood stream. Once in the blood stream, it targets an organ that produces chemicals that hold the bonds between cells in other organs that keep the organs shape and structure. The virus then breaks apart bonds that hold cells together in organs. The infected organs turn to mush and skin seeps body fluids from its pores and weak points like the eyes. The next stage of the infection cycle induces violent convulsions and heavy coughing. This sends body fluids containing the virus flying in all directions enabling it to move from person to person by infecting a large area around the convulsing victim. And finally, the last stage is death. This would all happen in a matter of days, showing how dangerous this virus is which is why it is treated under extreme caution.The Ebola virus is a member a family of RNA viruses known as filoviruses, and is a negative stranded RNA virus. The virus partial has the shape of a long stand with loops on the end, like worms. There are variations on this shape, depending on the specific virus. Each virus in the filovirus family contain a nucleocapsid consisting of a dark central space surrounded by a helical capsid, the outer protein coat of a cell. A channel exists in the nucleocapsid. This is where the Nucleic acid (DNA) is stored. One of the reasons Ebola is so hard to contain is because it can survive in a dead body for weeks. Due to the fact that we care of our deceased, infection can occur in people that are trying to burry the bodies of the infected or people living in the same place or area as an infected person. The first outbreak of Ebola was in Zaire. It was perhaps one of the most deadly, killing 318 people with a mortality rate of 88%. After killing itself out, it re-emerged in Sudan in 1976. The virus killed 284 and appeared again in 1979 infecting 34 people. Monkeys are a known carrier due to the 1989 Reston outbreak that killed all of the monkeys in the Quarantine laboratory, but many other animals such as birds and lizards are known to carry the disease as well. The reason that Ebola is such a major problem is cause it is a unique virus that uses speed and aggression to kill its victims. Being a virus it does not take on all of the characteristics of living beings. They do not have a response to stimuli nor do they reproduce by themselves. Viruses do not respond to any antibiotics thus taking one more weapon modern science could use against it. Our immune system produces antigens that latch onto the virus’s shell making it easily identified. But most of the time the virus tends to kill the victims before the immune system can start that process. The Ebola virus, furthermore has a tendency to mutate very quickly and mutate in dramatic ways. It can change its shape and the way it can effect people directly. It has been known to mutate from a strictly infectious disease that can only be transferred by direct contact with contaminated body fluids to a more deadly version that is airborne. Its uncertainty is what makes it so dangerous. It has been known to mutate from a strictly infectious disease that can only be transferred by direct contact with contaminated body fluids to a more deadly version that is airborne. Its uncertainty is what makes it so dangerous. The effects that the virus causes within and outside the body when one is infected is what makes the virus so deadly and hard to prevent. There has been multiple situations of an Ebola outbreak throughout our history. Each time the problem must be taken extremely cautiously and extremely series. The most recent outbreak which also impacted some U.S. doctors and something that I remember happening was in February of 2014. Doctors treating patients with the virus actually were infected by the virus. These doctor/nurse were taken into treatment extremely properly to hope for survival from the virus. They were both cured and it is said that people that survive from the Ebola virus develop antibodies that last for around 10 years. He was cured by an experimental drug named “ZMapp”. Due to the high production cost and the long production period to make this drug, it is not a complete answer to our Ebola problems. There are also still some uncertainties with the drug. There is still no 100% sure cure for Ebola, but there are vaccines and treatment that can help prevent the disease. Those who recover from the disease do so through the strength of their own immune system, according to the CDC. A experimental vaccine was very effective virus in a major trial in Guinea, the vaccine is the first to prevent infection from one of the most lethal known pathogens, The vaccine is called “rVSV-ZEBOV.” It was used for people in Guinea during 2015. 5837 people received the vaccine, and after 10 or more days Ebola virus was nonexistent. Doctors have found that one of the most important treatments for patients afflicted with the virus is simply keeping them well hydrated and helping them breathe, to give their immune system a better chance to fight off the disease. Doctors are trying several experimental treatments on patients. Some doctors are giving patients blood transfusions from those who have survived Ebola. The hope is that the survivor's antibodies will help the recipient's immune system fight off the virus. With the use of new technology such as recombinant DNA research, we are now able to see and begin to understand the molecular structure of Ebola and it's mutations. This is how the other vaccine was made. Virologist are hopeful that the details of virus replication and virus-host interactions will be uncovered in the near future. By using less virulent filoviruses, we can see how Ebola works in a slower less destructive form. New tools and new ideas will also contribute to the advancement of a cure for Ebola. With future studies and technology advancements, hopefully we can develop a sure cure for this virus to make sure that we can stop an Ebola outbreak and so it can not harm another person.