title: Fruit bats as reservoirs of Ebola virus.
abstract: The first recorded human outbreak of Ebola virus was in 1976, but the wild reservoir of this virus is still unknown. Here we test for Ebola in more than a thousand small vertebrates that were collected during Ebola outbreaks in humans and great apes between 2001 and 2003 in Gabon and the Republic of the Congo. We find evidence of asymptomatic infection by Ebola virus in three species of fruit bat, indicating that these animals may be acting as a reservoir for this deadly virus.
authors.affiliation: Centre International de Recherches Médicales de Franceville, BP 769 Franceville, Gabon. eric.leroy@ird.fr
authors.forename: Eric M
authors.initials: EM
authors.lastname: Leroy
authors.forename: Brice
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Kumulungui
authors.forename: Xavier
authors.initials: X
authors.lastname: Pourrut
authors.forename: Pierre
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Rouquet
authors.forename: Alexandre
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Hassanin
authors.forename: Philippe
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Yaba
authors.forename: André
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Délicat
authors.forename: Janusz T
authors.initials: JT
authors.lastname: Paweska
authors.forename: Jean-Paul
authors.initials: JP
authors.lastname: Gonzalez
authors.forename: Robert
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Swanepoel
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D000914:Antibodies, Viral / Q000032:analysis / Q000276:immunology; D018420:Ape Diseases / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000517:prevention & control / Q000635:transmission / Q000821:virology; D002685:Chiroptera / Q000145:classification / Q000276:immunology / Q000821:virology*; D003223:Congo / Q000453:epidemiology; D004196:Disease Outbreaks / Q000662:veterinary; D004197:Disease Reservoirs / Q000662:veterinary* / Q000821:virology*; D029043:Ebolavirus / Q000302:isolation & purification* / Q000502:physiology; D005681:Gabon / Q000453:epidemiology; D006071:Gorilla gorilla / Q000821:virology; D019142:Hemorrhagic Fever, Ebola / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000276:immunology / Q000662:veterinary / Q000821:virology*; D006801:Humans; D002679:Pan troglodytes / Q000821:virology; D012621:Seasons; D015047:Zoonoses / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000635:transmission / Q000821:virology
chemical_list: D000914:Antibodies, Viral