How Common Are Emerging Viruses?

By now, everyone has heard of HIV and Aids, but probably not many people realize that this disease is considering one of the so called emerging or emergent viruses. As the name suggests, emerging viruses are something new that has made its way into the environment. There are numerous reasons for this to happen and while the disease really isn't 'new', it's been hidden away from the general human population and exposed through clear cut deforestation, intrusive road systems that are built where humans previously had little contact or other similar causes. These diseases may have survived in remote areas and then when humans come in contact with them, there is no resistance since people haven't built up any immunity through contact. This kind of disease usually has devastating effects. It's reminiscent of the early European explorers who brought a host of diseases with them and decimated entire populations of native peoples.

Sometimes, though, new diseases emerge from seemingly nowhere. They sudden appear on the scene and are extremely contagious and dangerous. The viruses that cause Ebola and hemorrhagic fever in Africa are a big concern due to their high mortality. There are no cures for these diseases. Other diseases that suddenly emerge are the recent bird flu, monkey pox in Africa and West Nile Virus. Every time a new disease shows up, the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) and the World Health Organization (WHO) put out information about precautions and possible treatments.

Viruses are also capable of mutating into more virulent and resistant forms, which always makes treatment or diagnosis difficult. Many scientists believe that the viruses responsible for the terrible emerging diseases have lived within certain animal species for hundreds or even thousands of years, not harming them at all, but when the animals come in contact with humans, the virus is passed easily. As human populations increase and people need to push further and further into wilderness areas and cut down trees for farm land, grazing land, towns or roads, the once contained viruses can be released into the populations.

One example of a virus inhabiting animals, but not people until recently, is HIV. The virus was thought to originally live in monkeys in Africa and was not known in humans until the latter half of the 20th century. The monkeys actually carried a similar virus known as SIV, simian immunodeficiency virus, that mutated somehow into the infectious human immunodeficiency virus we have throughout the world today. Some Aids researchers think that it could have been passed to humans during the 1950s when people were given monkey blood in tests to prevent malaria, or possibly when infected monkey meat was eaten. Whatever the cause, HIV, like all of the emerging viruses have the possibility to create catastrophic results among human populations and continuing research must be done to try to better understand the spread of these viruses.