Still Eating Pork? Ebola Virus Found in Pigs, Infects Farm Workers

Should I say more about eating pork?

Just months after the swine flu pandemic panicked the world, varying strains of the Ebola virus have been discovered in pigs, and they may be jumping between swine and humans effortlessly.

Researchers, who reported their findings in the journal Science, are concerned that pigs are providing a melting pot where the virus could mutate into something deadlier. And they warned that the emergence of Ebola in the human food chain is “of serious concern.”

The infections were discovered among pigs in the Philippines after tissue samples were taken to identify the source of unusually severe respiratory infections which were plaguing swine across the country. The discovery came as a surprise to researchers, since until now the Ebola-Reston (REBOV) virus had only been found in humans and other primates.

Perhaps more frightening, Ebola was also detected in farm workers who tend to the infected pigs. And it’s likely that the virus had been transmitted from swine to humans, and vice versa.

FULL STORY HERE…

~ by streetknowledge on July 12, 2009.