Rabies Research Papers

Rabies is caused by a virus of the same name that is shaped like a bullet; it is oblong on one end and flat or concave on the other. The the surface of the virus, expect the flat end, is covered in knobs of glycoprotein. The rabies virus is most commonly transmitted through the saliva of an infected animal. Though transmission has occurred through transplantation, this occurrences are extremely rare and the virus and subsequent disease are overwhelmingly transmitted by any warm blooded animal. Humans are most commonly infected by bats, raccoons, canines, cats, foxes, skunks, domestic farm animals, mongooses, rabbits, and small rodents. Rabies is present in over 150 countries and occurs on all continents except Antarctica, although 95% of human deaths from rabies happen in Asia and Africa. Australia claims to be rabies-free, although there is a strain of the virus present in the bat population.
The host does not display symptoms for the first one to three months on average, but this time varies greatly between less than a week to over a year. Rabies affects the central nervous system by traveling through the peripheral system before entering the central nervous system and causing inflammation of the brain and sometimes inflammation of the spinal cord. Once this has occurred, the …show more content…
Dogs and cats are commonly vaccinated in the United States, lowering the number of animal deaths to only one or two, most likely caused by bat bites. After infection, measures can be taken before the virus enters the central nervous system. These measures, known as post-exposure prophylaxis, vary depending on the circumstances and the severity of the contact with the presumed rabid animal, and can be costly in the developing world. Other experimental treatments have been attempted, such as putting the patient into a chemically induced coma and using antiviral drugs, though only five out of thirty six infected patients survived subsequent to this