Article: "Infection Secrets of Ebola Explained"
Author: Helen Branswell
Source: https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/how-ebola-blindsides-the-bodys-defenses/
Summary
This article informs us on how the Ebola virus affects the human body. The ebola virus causes a fatal illness that causes severe bleeding, organ failure, and possibly death. When the virus enters the human body, it begins to disabling parts of the immune system by manipulating the white blood cells into attacking one another. With a weak immune system, the viruses can easily attack other cells in the body and spread the disease.
The Ebola virus has a decoy strategy that tricks the immune system. It releases large amounts of secreted glycoprotein (sGP) into the bloodstream, which looks externally similar to GP. This tricks the immune system into focusing on fighting the sGP rather than the Ebola virus, making it think that the sGP is the main invader. This way, the Ebola virus has the advantage of attacking cells while the immune system is distracted.
Symptoms in the beginning of the Ebola virus include a low fever, as well as headaches, abdominal pain, vomiting, and diarrhea. Many patients are advised to drink a lot of water when diagnosed with Ebola in order to balance the fluid content in their bodies. Patients tend to have a profound loss of fluids due to vomiting and diarrhea, and staying hydrated can compensate for the loss of fluids from Ebola. Replenishing electrolytes, like potassium, can also relieve diarrhea for patients.
Internal bleeding is another prominent symptom of Ebola. This is caused by disseminated intravascular coagulation in the damaged liver, which prevents blood from thickening in some locations of the body, creating leaky blood vessels. Since the virus is entered through the bloodstream, it causes more danger to the human body as it spreads throughout organs.
How does it relate to this class?
The functions of the Ebola virus relate to what we learned in cell communication with the flight or fight response. The secreted glycoprotein releases a similar signal as the GP, which tricks the immune system to thinking that the GP is the main invader, while the Ebola virus manipulates through the body and attacks cells. The similar signal from the sGP activates a response from the immune system, so that it tracks the location of the sGP cells and fights it. We also learned briefly about how viruses can manipulate the body into attacking its own cells during class when we were discussing diseases.
What makes it cutting edge?
Ebola has caught attention by many scientists since it has spread throughout Africa. Many aspects of the virus has been unexplained due to its fatal symptoms, however, with research, we have discovered how the virus has been successful at attacking the human body. With this information, we are closer to reaching a way to cure the disease that has killed millions of patients through Africa and the rest of the world.
What is a big idea that you took away or was reinforced?
The big idea that was reinforced in this article is the virus's ability to manipulate the immune system into attacking its own body. By secreting glycoproteins, the virus easily tricks the immune system into believing that there is another invader, besides the virus itself, in the body. By releasing a similar signal to real GP's, sGP's are able to trigger a response from the immune system, distracting it from noticing the real invader, the Ebola virus.
Why did you pick this article?
I picked this article because I have known about Ebola since it became controversial throughout the news, however, I was not educated on the disease and how fatal it was. I thought it would be interesting to learn more about the virus, especially since it has killed and infected millions of people throughout the world, and has been such a threat that many people were detained from entering countries because of suspiciously having Ebola. It is interesting how fast the virus can spread and how detrimental it is to our health.
No comments:
Post a Comment