Zombie Rage Virus – Fact or Fiction?

Zombie Rage Virus – Fact or Fiction?

The National Geographic Documentary: The Truth Behind Zombies – October 2010, has the Survivalist groups and Conspiracy Theorists up in arms. Many have dismissed the facts – in the documentary – as rhetoric and impossible. While others believe there just may be a grain of truth behind the facts presented.

The documentary discusses the history of zombiesm, zombie sensationalism, real-life zombies (Vodoun zombies), and pandemic threats that could possibly create a world-wide epidemic. What has ruffled the feathers of the Survivalist groups and Conspiracy Theorists? Answer: the documentary’s suggestion of a virus mutation that would create zombie-like symptoms.

The rabies virus is transmitted through contact with the saliva or nerve tissue of an infected animal (human) – more so wild animals than domestic animals. Rabies can also be transmitted through aerosol path by entering a cave of bats. Only one documented case of human to human transmission exists. In June 2004, the Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) confirmed the deaths of three organ transplant recipients as a result of rabies. The organs from the common donor were infected.

The rabies virus passes through the peripheral nervous system and replicates in the central nervous system. Because the rabies virus incubates internally, symptoms remain dormant for five days to one year (in some cases longer than a year), on average twenty to ninety days. The progressive stages of a rabies infection – in humans – includes: excitability, confusion, agitation, anxiety, slight or partial paralysis. If left untreated, the infected person will die within a week.

Scientists state, if the genetic code of the rabies virus experienced enough changes, or mutations, its incubation time could be drastically reduced.

Samita Andreansky, a virologist at Miller School of Medicine (University of Miami – Florida) said, “If a rabies virus can mutate fast enough, it could cause infection within an hour or a few hours. That’s entirely plausible.”1

Andreansky was one of the guests interviewed on the National Geographic documentary.

Influenza is transmitted via aerosolization involving droplet nuclei. These Airborne Pathogens are able to travel considerable distances and cause infection in susceptible hosts. The rabies virus adapting the aerosolization traits of the influenza virus would give it the spreading power of H1N1.

Is it possible?

“It’s theoretically possible – though extremely difficult – to create a hybrid rabies-influenza virus using modern genetic-engineering techniques ” Andreansky said.

“It’s scientifically unheard of for two radically different viruses – such as rabies and influenza – to borrow traits,” said Elankumaran Subbiah, a virologist at Virginia Tech, “they’re too different. They cannot share genetic information. Viruses assemble only parts that belong to them, and they don’t mix and match from different families.”

The two statements above, are proof that scientists and medical doctors need to remember that we can not control nature. According to an article by Jeffry M. Smith, past studies of avipoxviruses declared them safe – because they do not replicate in mammalian cells. However, in 1999, mammals became infected when chicken remnants, inoculated with the orthopoxvirus – engineered as a vaccine to combat rabies – was spread as bait throughout the border of Belgium and France. If these mammals became infected with a natural virus – similar to the rabies vaccine – they may be hosting a new transgenic hybrid. This inspires us to question the safety of using these vaccines on humans and mammals.

In another experiment, cell cultures were infected with two related viruses. Interaction between both viruses created many new hybrid viruses by recombination. The characteristics of some of the new viruses included traits not expressed in either parent virus.

With such long standing assumptions – throughout the scientific and medical community – proven wrong. Is it theoretically possible to discount the possibility of a rabies-influenza virus?

[source: The Truth Behind Zombies]