The fact that not everyone with Ebola virus disease (EVD) has died during the ongoing outbreak in West Africa, with an estimated case fatality rate of 70.8% by September 2014, suggests that some kind of immunity to this virus is possible. If left unchecked, this scenario will undoubtedly shift to a higher figure, as health-care conditions in many of the countries affected may not always enable infected hosts to recover. Although gender differences in the survival, incidence, and/or severity of infection are unknown, the current Ebola virus outbreak represents an unprecedented disaster for humans and a zoonotic successful strategy for a virus that cunningly and rapidly hijacks innate immunity to devastating effect.

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