In a new article published in BioScience, a research group including CEID members Nicole Gottdenker and Patrick Stephens revisit one of the biggest mysteries in infectious disease: where exactly does Ebola virus hide between outbreaks? Despite decades of research and dozens of outbreaks, no one has definitively identified the virus’s natural reservoir. Bats have long been suspected, but the evidence so far is surprisingly thin. Finding traces of the virus in wild mammals is incredibly rare, which makes the search for its true host frustratingly difficult.
The article pushes for a more holistic approach to solving this riddle. The authors argue that we need to bring together virologists, ecologists, wildlife experts, and even modelers to better understand how Ebola survives in the wild. Only by looking at the full ecological picture, how the virus moves through ecosystems, how different species interact, and how environmental factors come into play can we hope to find the animal (or animals) responsible. The goal isn’t just academic; figuring this out could help us spot warning signs early and head off future outbreaks before they reach people.
Without knowing where the virus hides, our efforts to control it are like trying to plug a leak without knowing where the hole is. Public health officials can’t design targeted interventions or predict where outbreaks might spark next. That’s why the researchers stress the need for long-term surveillance and funding for fieldwork—yes, even the tedious stuff like collecting samples from thousands of animals that don’t test positive. It’s slow and painstaking work, but until we crack the case of Ebola’s elusive reservoir, we’ll always be playing catch-up.
Please find the full article here.