Ebola outbreak caused by new ‘animal transmission’: What that means
More than 2,000 people have died after contracting the latest strain of the Ebola virus. The Ebola outbreak currently ravaging the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) was caused by a new transmission from animals to humans rather than by variants linked to earlier outbreaks, according to a new study published in the medical journal Nature Medicine. The virus in eastern DRC has killed more than 2,000 people of 4,449 recorded cases, making it the fastest-moving Ebola outbreak on record. It was formally declared on May 15 , though genetic sequencing later revealed the virus had actually begun circulating in February. On Wednesday, the World Health Organization (WHO) said the current Bundibugyo strain of the Ebola virus is spreading faster than health authorities can contain it and is on track to become the deadliest outbreak on record.
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