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Rabies in the Brain

By Olivia Ahmed and Rachel Alsheikh

What is Rabies?

How Rabies Affects the Brain

Rabies is a virus belonging to the genus Lyssavirus and the order Mononegavirales. It is usually transmitted from the saliva of an infected organism to the bloodstream of an uninfected organism. It targets the central nervous system and travels to the brain, where it causes inflammation. After onset, rabies is typically fatal.

Rabies does not change organelle

structure in neurons. Instead, it

inhibits neurotransmitter function. It

interferes with membrane ions to prevent brain networking activities. Rabies also progessively inhibits gene expression in host cells, preventing the production of interferons. These changes lead to the failure of metabolic regulation. Rabies causes the apoptosis (death) of T cells, preventing a specific immune response.

Death ususally occurs within

seven days.

How Rabies Multiplies in the Body

Rabies attaches to the G protein on

the host cell membrane and fuses

through to the cytoplasm. There, its

viral RNA intiates transcription with

RNA polymerase. The viral RNA is

then translated into individual RNA

proteins. These proteins damage the host cell.

Diagnosis

The Rabies Virus

Rabies belongs to the family Rhabdoviridae.

It is an RNA virus around 180 nm long and

75 nm wide, with a distinct bullet shape. It has

a negative, unsegemented, single-stranded

RNA genome. It codes for five proteins:

  • nucleoprotein
  • phosphoprotein
  • matrix protein
  • glycoprotein
  • polymerase

How Rabies Reaches the Brain

Prevention and Treatment

First, the rabies virus initiates replication

for an incubation period in the muscle at the site of transmission. It then binds to two specific receptors on neuron membranes. It travels along peripheral nerves to the central nervous system at a speed of 50mm-100mm a day.

Pre-exposure vaccines are availible for

both people and animals to prevent rabies.

Once one without a vaccine is exposed to

rabies, however, immediate wound cleansing and irrigation can significantly decrease chances of infection. Post-exposure vaccines containing

a combination of a biochemical vaccine and a

passive antibody (human rabies immune

globulin) can also prevent the progession

of rabies if administered early enough.

Name the Vector!

Symptoms

Name the Vector!

Initial symptoms:

  • Fever
  • Headache
  • Weakness and discomfort
  • Numbness or tingling

Progressive symptoms:

  • Insomnia
  • Confusion and anxiety
  • Excitation and agitation
  • Partial paralysis
  • Hallucinations
  • Hypersalivation

Name the Vector!

Jumping the Species Barrier

Strains of rabies are able to infect multiple

species. They can jump from the host cell to human cells and the cells of other animals, as demonstrated by human incidents of rabies and the discovery of a raccoon strain of rabies in the fisher mammal in Pennsylvania.

About 75% of recently emerging infectious diseases come from animals and about 60% of all human pathogens are zoonotic.

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