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how big is the rabies virus

by Elissa Gulgowski Published 2 years ago Updated 2 years ago
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Structure. Rhabdoviruses are approximately 180 nm long and 75 nm wide. The rabies genome encodes five proteins: nucleoprotein (N), phosphoprotein (P), matrix protein (M), glycoprotein (G) and polymerase (L).

Symptoms

When the virus was spread in a thin layer onto surfaces like glass, metal or leaves, the longest survival was 144 hours at 5 °C / 41°F (that’s 6 full days!) At 20°C / 68°F, the virus was infective for 24h on glass and leaves and 48h on metal. Where does rabies come from in an animal? Definition.

Causes

Temperature and conditions may play a small part in varying the time frame, but the rabies virus cannot survive outside of a host body. Typically speaking, the rabies virus will be rendered inactive once outside of the host body (and host body material such as saliva) for a matter of seconds.

Prevention

Rabies is infectious to mammals; three stages of central nervous system infection are recognized. The first stage is a one- to three-day period characterized by behavioral changes and is known as the prodromal stage. The second is the excitative stage, which lasts three to four days.

Complications

  • An animal is bitten by a rabid animal.
  • Rabies virus from the infected saliva enters the wound.
  • Rabies virus travels through the nerves to the spinal cord and brain. ...
  • When it reaches the brain, the virus multiplies rapidly and passes to the salivary glands. ...
  • The infected animal usually dies within 7 days of becoming sick.

How long can rabies survive on a surface?

Can rabies survive outside the body?

What are the stages of rabies?

What is the life cycle of rabies virus?

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Why is the rabies virus bullet shaped?

The matrix protein M (formerly named M2) occupies an intermediate position between the ribonucleocapsid and the envelope, and is responsible for virus budding and the bullet-shaped morphology.

What does a rabies look like?

The first symptoms of rabies may be similar to the flu, including weakness or discomfort, fever, or headache. There also may be discomfort, prickling, or an itching sensation at the site of the bite. These symptoms may last for days. Symptoms then progress to cerebral dysfunction, anxiety, confusion, and agitation.

How long until rabies kills a human?

Death usually occurs 2 to 10 days after first symptoms. Survival is almost unknown once symptoms have presented, even with intensive care. Rabies has also occasionally been referred to as hydrophobia ("fear of water") throughout its history.

How likely are you to get rabies?

Cases of human rabies cases in the United States are rare, with only 1 to 3 cases reported annually.

Why can't we cure rabies?

So why is rabies so difficult to treat? Viral infections can usually be treated using anti-viral drugs, which inhibit virus development. Rabies virus uses a myriad of strategies to avoid the immune system and hide from antiviral drugs, even using the blood brain barrier to protect itself once it has entered the brain.

Why does rabies make you afraid of water?

People used to call rabies hydrophobia because it appears to cause a fear of water. The reason is that the infection causes intense spasms in the throat when a person tries to swallow. Even the thought of swallowing water can cause spasms, making it appear that the individual is afraid of water.

Which country has the most rabies deaths?

IndiaAn estimated 31,000 human deaths due to rabies occur annually in Asia, with the majority – approximately 20,000 – concentrated in India. Worldwide, India has the highest rate of human rabies in the world primarily due to stray dogs.

Who is most at risk for rabies?

ChildrenChildren are often at greatest risk from rabies. They are more likely to be bitten by dogs, and are also more likely to be severely exposed through multiple bites in high-risk sites on the body. Severe exposures make it more difficult to prevent rabies unless access to good medical care is immediately available.

What countries have no rabies?

Countries generally recognised as rabies-free countries are: American Samoa, Antigua, Aruba, Australia, Barbados, Belgium, Bermuda, England, Fiji, French Polynesia (Tahiti), Guam, Hawaii, Ireland, Jamaica, Japan, Malta, New Caledonia, New Zealand, Northern Ireland, Saint Lucia, Scotland, Singapore, Sweden, St.

How would u know if u have rabies?

The first symptoms of rabies can appear from a few days to more than a year after the bite happens. At first, there's a tingling, prickling, or itching feeling around the bite area. A person also might have flu-like symptoms such as a fever, headache, muscle aches, loss of appetite, nausea, and tiredness.

What animals Cannot get rabies?

Birds, snakes, and fish are not mammals, so they can´t get rabies and they can´t give it to you. In the United States today, about 93 of every 100 reported cases of rabies are in wild animals. Raccoons are the most common wild animal with rabies.

Has any human survived rabies?

The only way to survive an infection—or so scientists believed—is treatment with antibodies and vaccination immediately after a bite from an infected animal. Still, there have been sporadic reports of people surviving an infection even without those measures.

How do you know if an animal has rabies?

You can't tell if an animal has rabies by just looking at it—the only way to know for sure if an animal (or a person) has rabies is to perform laboratory testing. However, animals with rabies may act strangely. Some may be aggressive and try to bite you or other animals, or they may drool more than normal.

What happens if a human gets rabies?

Following a bite, the rabies virus spreads by way of the nerve cells to the brain. Once in the brain, the virus multiplies rapidly. This activity causes severe inflammation of the brain and spinal cord after which the person deteriorates rapidly and dies.

What does a rabies bite feel like?

At first, there's a tingling, prickling, or itching feeling around the bite area. A person also might have flu-like symptoms such as a fever, headache, muscle aches, loss of appetite, nausea, and tiredness. After a few days, neurological symptoms develop, including: irritability or aggressiveness.

What are the 3 stages of rabies?

There are three clinical phases of the disease:Prodromal phase - the onset of clinical rabies in man includes 2-4 days of prodromal. ... Excitation phase - the excitation phase begins gradually and may persist to death. ... Paralytic phase - hydrophobia, if present, disappears and swallowing becomes possible,

Overview

Structure

Medically reviewed by
Dr. Karthikeya T M
Symptoms
If you or someone you know is exhibiting symptoms of Rabies, seek medical attention immediately.

Incubation period may be as short as two days or as long as 6 years and the signs and symptoms are as follows:

The first are flu-like symptoms

  • Fever
  • Headache and anxiety
  • Sore throat and cough

Then follows a neurologic period

  • Aggression
  • Convulsions
  • Hypersalivation and hydrophobia
  • Hallucinations
  • Paralysis
  • Hyperventilation

The final stage is coma which leads to death

Causes

  • The caused include:
  • It is caused by rabies virus which infects the central nervous system
  • Spread by bites of rabid animals like dogs, cayotes, racoons
  • The virus is present in saliva therefore transmission is possible through saliva when It comes in contact with the open wound
  • Rarely the virus can be transmitted through tissue or organ transplantation

Prevention

  • Vaccination of pets
  • Vaccination for those who are at risk of infection like veterinarians
  • Avoid approaching wild animals
  • Get vaccinated when traveling to countries where rabies is common

Complications

  • Myocarditis
  • Respiratory distress
  • Acute renal failure
  • Gastrointestinal hemorrhage

Genome organization

Life cycle

Infection

Signs and symptoms

Rhabdoviruses have helical symmetry, so their infectious particles are approximately cylindrical in shape. They are characterized by an extremely broad host spectrum ranging from plants to insects and mammals; human-infecting viruses more commonly have icosahedral symmetry and take shapes approximating regular polyhedra.

Antigenicity

The rhabdovirus virion is an enveloped, rod- or bullet-shaped structure containing five protein species. The nucleoprotein (N) coats the RNA at the rate of one monomer of protein to nine nucleotides, forming a nucleocapsid with helical symmetry. Associated with the nucleocapsid are copies of P (phosphoprotein) and L (large) protein. The L protein is well named, its gene taking up about half of the genome. Its large size is justified by the fact that it is a multifunctional protein. …

Evolution

After receptor binding, Rabies lyssavirus enters its host cells through the endosomal transport pathway. Inside the endosome, the low pH value induces the membrane fusion process, thus enabling the viral genome to reach the cytosol. Both processes, receptor binding and membrane fusion, are catalyzed by the glycoprotein G which plays a critical role in pathogenesis (mutant virus without G proteins cannot propagate).

Prevention

In September 1931, Joseph Lennox Pawan of Trinidad found Negri bodies in the brain of a bat with unusual habits. In 1932, Pawan first discovered that infected vampire bats could transmit rabies to humans and other animals.
From the wound of entry, Rabies lyssavirus travels quickly along the neural pathways of the peripheral nervous system. The retrograde axonal transport of …

Symptoms

The first symptoms of rabies may be very similar to those of the flu including general weakness or discomfort, fever, or headache. These symptoms may last for days. There may be also discomfort or a prickling or itching sensation at the site of bite, progressing within days to symptoms of cerebral dysfunction, anxiety, confusion, agitation. As the disease progresses, the person may experience delirium, abnormal behavior, hallucinations, and insomnia. Rabies lyssavirus may als…

Diagnosis

Upon viral entry into the body and also after vaccination, the body produces virus neutralizing antibodies which bind and inactivate the virus. Specific regions of the G protein have been shown to be most antigenic in leading to the production of virus neutralizing antibodies. These antigenic sites, or epitopes, are categorized into regions I–IV and minor site a. Previous work has demonstrated that antigenic sites II and III are most commonly targeted by natural neutralizing a…

Transmission

All extant rabies viruses appear to have evolved within the last 1500 years. There are seven genotypes of Rabies lyssavirus. In Eurasia cases are due to three of these—genotype 1 (classical rabies) and to a lesser extent genotypes 5 and 6 (European bat lyssaviruses type-1 and -2). Genotype 1 evolved in Europe in the 17th century and spread to Asia, Africa and the Americas as a result of European exploration and colonization.

Post-Exposure Prophylaxis

  • Eliminating rabies in dogs
    Rabies is a vaccine-preventable disease. Vaccinating dogs is the most cost-effective strategy for preventing rabies in people. Dog vaccination reduces deaths attributable to dog-mediated rabies and the need for PEP as a part of dog bite patient care.
  • Awareness on rabies and preventing dog bites
    Education on dog behaviour and bite prevention for both children and adults is an essential extension of a rabies vaccination programme and can decrease both the incidence of human rabies and the financial burden of treating dog bites. Increasingawareness of rabies prevention …
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Who Response

  • The incubation period for rabies is typically 2–3 months but may vary from 1 week to 1 year, dependent upon factors such as the location of virus entry and viral load. Initial symptoms of rabies include a fever with pain and unusual or unexplainedtingling, pricking, or burning sensation (paraesthesia) at the wound site. As the virus spreads to the central nervous system, progressiv…
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1.What is Rabies? | Rabies | CDC - Centers for Disease …

Url:https://www.cdc.gov/rabies/about.html

31 hours ago Rabies Virus Fact Sheet. Print. Family Rhabdoviridae, genus Lyssavirus; bullet-shaped, enveloped virus; approximately 75nm in diameter by 180 nm in length; single-stranded, negative-sense RNA genome. Recombinant rabies virus vectors: Replication-deficient rabies vectors can be useful tools for investigation into neuronal trafficking or targeted expression in neurons.

2.Rabies virus - Wikipedia

Url:https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rabies_virus

8 hours ago  · Rabies is a deadly virus spread to people from the saliva of infected animals. The rabies virus is usually transmitted through a bite. Animals most likely to transmit rabies in the United States include bats, coyotes, foxes, raccoons and skunks. In developing countries, stray dogs are the most likely to spread rabies to people.

3.Rabies - World Health Organization

Url:https://www.who.int/news-room/fact-sheets/detail/rabies

22 hours ago  · Español (Spanish) Rabies virus is transmitted through direct contact (such as through broken skin or mucous membranes in the eyes, nose, or mouth) with saliva or brain/nervous system tissue from an infected animal. People usually get rabies from the bite of a rabid animal. It is also possible, but rare, for people to get rabies from non-bite ...

4.Rabies Virus Fact Sheet – Stanford Environmental Health …

Url:https://ehs.stanford.edu/reference/rabies-virus-fact-sheet

36 hours ago  · Rabies vaccine can prevent rabies.. Rabies is a serious illness that almost always results in death. Rabies virus infects the central nervous system. Symptoms may occur from days to years after exposure to the virus and include delirium (confusion), abnormal behavior, hallucinations, hydrophobia (fear of water), and insomnia (difficulty sleeping), which precede …

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