It is true the name 'Ebola' sounds no longer new, as it has at the moment won itself a more popular name than that of President Barack Obama, and even tripple-fold the influence of Vladimir Putin, the Russian dictator and Xi Jinping of China put together. But there still hides some surprising things you don't know about the Ebola which are listed below:
1. Ebola is named after the Ebola River in Zaire where it first emerged in Sudan and Zaire in 1976.
2. So far, it is the world's most deadly virus. It is an RNA virus which can reproduce in 8 hours, and when it does, millions of new viruses are produced.
3. There are five subtypes of the Ebola virus namely; Ebola-Zaire (EBOZ), Ebola-Sudan (SUDV), Ebola-Cote d'Ivoire (EBO-CI), Ebola-Bundibugyo (BDBV), Ebola-Reston (EBOR/RESTV).
4. It has no known vaccine or cure and it kills within a short time (very painful death), leaving no time to treat an infected individual.
5. Major hosts are in 5 species of Bats, but monkeys and apes are easily infected and killed.
6. Since 1976, the Ebola outbreak of 2014 is the most challenging one witnessed in Africa, and human consumption of equatorial animals in Africa in the form of bushmeat has been linked to the transmission of Ebola.
7. Statistically, there have been more than 3,140 reported cases and more than 2,000 deaths since the discovery of Ebola.
8. 10% of infected victims have been discovered to have survived and recovered from the Ebola fever. How this happened/happens still remains a question to be answered.
9. Ebola is no respecter of person, most doctors and nurses treating infected victims get infected themselves.
10. The Ebola virus is easily transmissible, either through sweat, sneeze, body contact etc. Prevention isn't better than cure in the case of Ebola, prevention is the best way safe.