Large swathes of the West African population may be immune to the deadly Ebola virus, ravaging the region.The current outbreak, the worst on record since the virus was discovered in 1976, has claimed the lives of 4,493 people, infecting 8,997, the World Health Organisation said yesterday. But a team of scientists in the US believe the Ebola virus may be silently immunising a significant portion of the population, who never fall ill or infect others, protecting them from future infection.
These people will never show the tell-take signs of the disease, the high fever, headaches and flu-like symptoms.
Experts in the US believe large swathes of the West African population may be naturally immune to the Ebola virus, having been infected but never falling ill. Health workers in Liberia are pictured carrying a 70-year-old patient, Francis Koneh, to a hospital in the capital of Monrovia
The scientists at the universities of Texas and Florida if this immunity can be identified it could revolutionise the way public health authorities are tackling the epidemic in West Africa. Red Cross members are pictured removing the body of an Ebola victim from his home
They will never succumb to the extreme vomiting, diarrhoea, nor the deadly internal bleeding.
If this immunity can be confirmed and identified, it could, a team of researchers from the University of Florida and the University of Texas say, change the strategy for fighting the disease.
They suggest those found to be naturally immune to Ebola could help slow the spread of the disease in two important ways.
Firstly they can be recruited to work as health workers and caregivers, helping treat the most contagious patients and high-risk communities
And secondly their natural immunity may make them prime candidates for donating blood for transfusions to help treat victims.
Dr Steve Bellan and Dr Lauren Ancel Meyers of the University of Texas, have called on public health authorities conduct studies in Sierra Leone, Liberia and Guinea - the three worst-affected nations.
That research would aim to determine how commonplace it is for people to be infected with Ebola without ever developing the symptoms, or spreading the disease.
Then, they say, it can be established whether those individuals will be protected from future infection.
Dr Bellen said: 'Ultimately, knowing whether a large segment of the population in the afflicted regions are immune to Ebola could save lives.'If we can reliably identify who they are, they could become people who help with disease-control tasks, and that would prevent exposing others who aren't immune.
'We might not have to wait until we have a vaccine to use immune individuals to reduce the spread of disease.'
Led by Dr Bellan, the team, which also included Juliet Pulliam, an assistant professor at the University of Florida, looked at studies conducted in the aftermath of past outbreaks.
One showed 71 per cent of people who had close contact with an Ebola patient and tested positive for the virus did not fall ill.
Another revealed 46 per cent of people who came into close contact with a victim and did not get sick, had evidence of infection with the virus.
Dr Pulliam added: 'We want to know whether people who are infected without getting sick become immune.
'If these people are protected from future infections, this would open up new opportunities for controlling the disease.'
They will never succumb to the extreme vomiting, diarrhoea, nor the deadly internal bleeding.
If this immunity can be confirmed and identified, it could, a team of researchers from the University of Florida and the University of Texas say, change the strategy for fighting the disease.
They suggest those found to be naturally immune to Ebola could help slow the spread of the disease in two important ways.
Firstly they can be recruited to work as health workers and caregivers, helping treat the most contagious patients and high-risk communities
And secondly their natural immunity may make them prime candidates for donating blood for transfusions to help treat victims.
Dr Steve Bellan and Dr Lauren Ancel Meyers of the University of Texas, have called on public health authorities conduct studies in Sierra Leone, Liberia and Guinea - the three worst-affected nations.
That research would aim to determine how commonplace it is for people to be infected with Ebola without ever developing the symptoms, or spreading the disease.
Then, they say, it can be established whether those individuals will be protected from future infection.
Dr Bellen said: 'Ultimately, knowing whether a large segment of the population in the afflicted regions are immune to Ebola could save lives.'If we can reliably identify who they are, they could become people who help with disease-control tasks, and that would prevent exposing others who aren't immune.
'We might not have to wait until we have a vaccine to use immune individuals to reduce the spread of disease.'
Led by Dr Bellan, the team, which also included Juliet Pulliam, an assistant professor at the University of Florida, looked at studies conducted in the aftermath of past outbreaks.
One showed 71 per cent of people who had close contact with an Ebola patient and tested positive for the virus did not fall ill.
Another revealed 46 per cent of people who came into close contact with a victim and did not get sick, had evidence of infection with the virus.
Dr Pulliam added: 'We want to know whether people who are infected without getting sick become immune.
'If these people are protected from future infections, this would open up new opportunities for controlling the disease.'
But it is not yet known whether such infection provides immunity.
The scientists conclude that resolving the question of whether asymptomatic infection provides immunity could be critical.
The outcome, and subsequent identification of naturally immune individuals, could help shape public health efforts to contain the disease, as well as allowing for accurate estimates for the likely spread of the disease.
Professor Meyers said: 'Understanding the prevalence and immunological effects of these silent Ebola infections is critical to making reliable epidemic projections and improving control efforts.
'We believe that we can and should investigate this phenomenon as soon as possible.'
Dr Pulliam added: 'If we can take advantage of natural immunity within the affected communities, we may be able to impact the course of the epidemic even before a vaccine becomes available.
'Even if current projections overestimate how big this epidemic will become, its effects are devastating, and a global effort to control the spread of Ebola within West Africa remains imperative.'
The scientists' published their thoughts in a letter which appeared in The Lancet medical journal on Tuesday.
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