Hensley Lisa E, Jones Steven M, Feldmann Heinz, Jahrling Peter B, Geisbert Thomas W
Virology Division, U.S. Army Medical Research Institute of Infectious Diseases, 1425 Porter Street, Fort Detrick, MD 21702-5011, USA.
Curr Mol Med. 2005 Dec;5(8):761-72. doi: 10.2174/156652405774962344.
Ebola and Marburg viruses, family Filoviridae, are among the best known examples of emerging and re-emerging pathogens. Although outbreaks have been sporadic and geographically restricted to areas of Central Africa, the hemorrhagic fevers caused by these viruses are remarkably severe and are associated with high case fatality rates often exceeding 80 percent. In addition to humans, these viruses have decimated populations of wild apes in Central Africa. Currently, there are no vaccines or effective therapies available for human use. Progress in understanding the geneses of the pathophysiological changes that make filoviral infections of humans so destructive has been slow, primarily because these viruses require special containment for safe research. However, an increasing understanding of the molecular mechanisms of filoviral pathogenesis, facilitated by the development of new tools to elucidate critical regulatory elements in the viral life cycle, is providing new targets that can be exploited for therapeutic interventions. In addition, substantial progress has been made in developing recombinant vaccines against these viruses.
丝状病毒科的埃博拉病毒和马尔堡病毒是新出现和再次出现的病原体中最著名的例子。尽管疫情是零星发生的,且地理上局限于中非地区,但这些病毒引起的出血热非常严重,病死率往往很高,常常超过80%。除了人类,这些病毒还使中非的野生猿猴种群数量大幅减少。目前,尚无供人类使用的疫苗或有效疗法。在理解导致人类丝状病毒感染具有如此大破坏力的病理生理变化的成因方面进展缓慢,主要是因为这些病毒进行安全研究需要特殊的防护措施。然而,随着用于阐明病毒生命周期中关键调控元件的新工具的开发,对丝状病毒发病机制分子机制的了解日益增加,这为治疗干预提供了可利用的新靶点。此外,在开发针对这些病毒的重组疫苗方面也取得了重大进展。