Introduction
Rabies was first "isolated" by Dr. Louis Pasteur and coworkers in the 1880's after passage from rabbit to rabbit using neural tissue. By drying rabbit CNS in sunlight, Pasteur et al prepared a vaccine since rabies virus was
inactivated by drying and sunlight (ultraviolet irradiation).
Reference:-http://webspace.ship.edu/lhelli/rabies/
Rabies is a zoonotic disease (a disease that is transmitted to humans from animals) that is caused by a virus. The disease infects domestic and wild animals, and is spread to people through close contact with infected saliva via bites or scratches.
Rabies is a viral disease that causes acute encephalitis (inflammation of the brain) in warm-blooded animals. The disease is zoonotic, meaning it can be transmitted from one species to another, such as from dogs to humans, commonly by a bite from an infected animal. For a human, rabies is almost invariably fatal if post exposure prophylaxis is not administered prior to the onset of severe symptoms. The rabies virus infects the central nervous system, ultimately causing disease in the brain and death.
The rabies virus travels to the brain by following the peripheral nerves. The incubation period of the disease is usually a few months in humans, depending on the distance the virus must travel to reach the central nervous system Once the rabies virus reaches the central nervous system and symptoms begin to show, the infection is effectively untreatable and usually fatal within days.
Early-stage symptoms of rabies are malaise, headache and fever, progressing to acute pain, violent movements, uncontrolled excitement, depression, and hydrophobia.[1] Finally, the patient may experience periods of mania and lethargy, eventually leading to coma. The primary cause of death is usually respiratory insufficiency.
Reference:-http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rabies
Rabies causes about 55,000 human deaths annually worldwide, mostly in Asia and Africa. Roughly 97% of human rabies cases result from dog bites. In the US, animal control and vaccination programs have effectively eliminated domestic dogs as reservoirs of rabies. In several countries, including Australia and Japan, rabies carried by terrestrial animals has been eliminated entirely. The rabies virus was eliminated from the United Kingdom early in the 20th century.
Etiology and Epidemiology:-Rabies is caused by lyssaviruses in the Rhabdovirus family. Lyssaviruses are usually confined to 1 major reservoir species in a given geographic area, although spillover to other species is common. Identification of different virus variants by laboratory procedures such as monoclonal antibody analysis or genetic sequencing has greatly enhanced understanding of rabies epidemiology. Generally, each virus variant is responsible for rabies transmission between members of the same species in a given geographic area. From an epidemiologic perspective, it is preferable to use the name of the species acting as the reservoir as an adjective: rabies maintained by dog-to-dog transmission is termed canine rabies, whereas rabies in a dog as a result of infection with a variant from a different reservoir, eg, skunk (or fox), should be referred to as skunk (or fox, etc) rabies in a dog.In North America, distinct virus variants are responsible for rabies in dogs and coyotes in Mexico and south Texas, red and Arctic foxes in Canada and Alaska, raccoons along the eastern seaboard, gray foxes in Texas and a closely related variant in gray foxes in the southwestern USA. Two different variants are responsible for rabies in striped skunks, one in the south central states and the other in the north central states. Another skunk rabies virus variant is seen in California. The epidemiology of rabies in bats is complex, but in general, each variant found in bats may be assigned to a predominant bat species. Spillover from bats to terrestrial animals is seen infrequently. Most human cases of rabies in the USA in the past decade have been caused by bat rabies virus variants (especially the variant associated with Lasionycteris noctivagans , the silver-haired bat, and Pipistrellussubflavus , the Eastern Pipistrelle).
Canine rabies predominates in Africa, Asia, Latin America, and the Middle East. In North America and Europe, where canine rabies has been practically eliminated, rabies is maintained in wildlife. For many years, skunks were the most commonly reported rabid animal in the USA, but since 1990, rabid raccoons have been the most numerous. Canine rabies became established in coyotes ( Canislatrans ) in southern Texas and Mexico, with the potential to spread throughout much of the USA and Canada. Skunk, raccoon, and fox rabies are each found in fairly distinct geographic regions of North America, although some overlap occurs. Bat rabies is distributed throughout the USA and Central and South America. In Europe, red fox rabies predominates. In parts of northern and eastern Europe, rabies in raccoon dogs is of increasing concern. Rabies in insectivorous bats may be widely distributed in Europe. The vampire bat is an important reservoir in Mexico, Central and South America, and is the source of outbreaks in cattle. Other wild species play an important role in the transmission of rabies in certain areas, including mongooses in the Caribbean, southern Africa, and parts of Asia; jackals in certain parts of Africa; and wolves in parts of northern Europe.No cat-to-cat transmission of rabies has been recorded, and no feline rabies virus variant is known. However, cats are the most commonly reported rabid domestic animal in the USA. Virus is present in the saliva of rabid cats, and people have developed rabies after being bitten by a rabid cat. Reported cases in domestic cats have outnumbered those in dogs in the USA every year since 1988.
VIDEO LINK:-http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NAiN9ZCMnJ0
Reference:-http://www.merckvetmanual.com/mvm/index.jsp?cfile=htm/bc/102300.htm
inactivated by drying and sunlight (ultraviolet irradiation).
Reference:-http://webspace.ship.edu/lhelli/rabies/
Rabies is a zoonotic disease (a disease that is transmitted to humans from animals) that is caused by a virus. The disease infects domestic and wild animals, and is spread to people through close contact with infected saliva via bites or scratches.
Rabies is a viral disease that causes acute encephalitis (inflammation of the brain) in warm-blooded animals. The disease is zoonotic, meaning it can be transmitted from one species to another, such as from dogs to humans, commonly by a bite from an infected animal. For a human, rabies is almost invariably fatal if post exposure prophylaxis is not administered prior to the onset of severe symptoms. The rabies virus infects the central nervous system, ultimately causing disease in the brain and death.
The rabies virus travels to the brain by following the peripheral nerves. The incubation period of the disease is usually a few months in humans, depending on the distance the virus must travel to reach the central nervous system Once the rabies virus reaches the central nervous system and symptoms begin to show, the infection is effectively untreatable and usually fatal within days.
Early-stage symptoms of rabies are malaise, headache and fever, progressing to acute pain, violent movements, uncontrolled excitement, depression, and hydrophobia.[1] Finally, the patient may experience periods of mania and lethargy, eventually leading to coma. The primary cause of death is usually respiratory insufficiency.
Reference:-http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rabies
Rabies causes about 55,000 human deaths annually worldwide, mostly in Asia and Africa. Roughly 97% of human rabies cases result from dog bites. In the US, animal control and vaccination programs have effectively eliminated domestic dogs as reservoirs of rabies. In several countries, including Australia and Japan, rabies carried by terrestrial animals has been eliminated entirely. The rabies virus was eliminated from the United Kingdom early in the 20th century.
Etiology and Epidemiology:-Rabies is caused by lyssaviruses in the Rhabdovirus family. Lyssaviruses are usually confined to 1 major reservoir species in a given geographic area, although spillover to other species is common. Identification of different virus variants by laboratory procedures such as monoclonal antibody analysis or genetic sequencing has greatly enhanced understanding of rabies epidemiology. Generally, each virus variant is responsible for rabies transmission between members of the same species in a given geographic area. From an epidemiologic perspective, it is preferable to use the name of the species acting as the reservoir as an adjective: rabies maintained by dog-to-dog transmission is termed canine rabies, whereas rabies in a dog as a result of infection with a variant from a different reservoir, eg, skunk (or fox), should be referred to as skunk (or fox, etc) rabies in a dog.In North America, distinct virus variants are responsible for rabies in dogs and coyotes in Mexico and south Texas, red and Arctic foxes in Canada and Alaska, raccoons along the eastern seaboard, gray foxes in Texas and a closely related variant in gray foxes in the southwestern USA. Two different variants are responsible for rabies in striped skunks, one in the south central states and the other in the north central states. Another skunk rabies virus variant is seen in California. The epidemiology of rabies in bats is complex, but in general, each variant found in bats may be assigned to a predominant bat species. Spillover from bats to terrestrial animals is seen infrequently. Most human cases of rabies in the USA in the past decade have been caused by bat rabies virus variants (especially the variant associated with Lasionycteris noctivagans , the silver-haired bat, and Pipistrellussubflavus , the Eastern Pipistrelle).
Canine rabies predominates in Africa, Asia, Latin America, and the Middle East. In North America and Europe, where canine rabies has been practically eliminated, rabies is maintained in wildlife. For many years, skunks were the most commonly reported rabid animal in the USA, but since 1990, rabid raccoons have been the most numerous. Canine rabies became established in coyotes ( Canislatrans ) in southern Texas and Mexico, with the potential to spread throughout much of the USA and Canada. Skunk, raccoon, and fox rabies are each found in fairly distinct geographic regions of North America, although some overlap occurs. Bat rabies is distributed throughout the USA and Central and South America. In Europe, red fox rabies predominates. In parts of northern and eastern Europe, rabies in raccoon dogs is of increasing concern. Rabies in insectivorous bats may be widely distributed in Europe. The vampire bat is an important reservoir in Mexico, Central and South America, and is the source of outbreaks in cattle. Other wild species play an important role in the transmission of rabies in certain areas, including mongooses in the Caribbean, southern Africa, and parts of Asia; jackals in certain parts of Africa; and wolves in parts of northern Europe.No cat-to-cat transmission of rabies has been recorded, and no feline rabies virus variant is known. However, cats are the most commonly reported rabid domestic animal in the USA. Virus is present in the saliva of rabid cats, and people have developed rabies after being bitten by a rabid cat. Reported cases in domestic cats have outnumbered those in dogs in the USA every year since 1988.
VIDEO LINK:-http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NAiN9ZCMnJ0
Reference:-http://www.merckvetmanual.com/mvm/index.jsp?cfile=htm/bc/102300.htm