China scientists create mutant Ebola virus in lab which causes scabs over eyeballs
Also Read | Your guide to Cyclone Remal — states on alert, potential impact, advisory & moreIt is important to note that a deadly virus like Ebola needs extremely secure facilities of Biosafety Level 4 (BSL-4). Hence, the Chinese researchers used a different virus called vesicular stomatitis virus (VSV), to carry Ebola glycoprotein which plays a crucial role in helping the virus enter and infect cells of its host.The researchers said that when they harvested the organs of the dead hamsters, they noted that the deadly virus was spread throughout their body, including the heart, spleen, lung, kidney, stomach, intestines and brain tissues, with the highest levels in the liver.Researchers further noted that the experiment provided a rapid preclinical evaluation of medical countermeasures against Ebola under BLS-2 conditions.
"Overall, this surrogate model represents a safe, effective, and economical tool for rapid preclinical evaluation of medical countermeasures against EBOV (Ebola virus) under BSL-2 conditions, which would accelerate technological advances and breakthroughs in confronting Ebola virus disease," Science Direct quoted the researchers as saying. Milestone Alert!
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