Page 472 - AWSAR 2.0

448 || AWSAR Awarded Popular Science Stories - 2019
Rabies: Removed or Re- emerging!!!
Ms. Suchismita Behera*
Email: suchi.ravenshaw@gmail.com
Viral infections have been considered as a major burden to both human and animal health for a long time. Several viruses have created menace to public health and thus come into the limelight in the list of viral diseases. While achieving success against these diseases on demand, there is one that seems to be either eliminated or forgotten. That is rabies.
Rabies is an infectious disease caused by a virus named rabies virus. It is neurotropic in nature as it attacks and affects the nervous system, particularly central nervous system (CNS). This bullet-shaped virus has a broad range of hosts, including bat, dog, skunk, raccoon and fox, but dogs and bats act as major reservoir hosts. Transmission can occur to nonreservoir domestic animals, nonreservoir
live stocks and humans as well.
The story of rabies started in 2300 BC
in Babylon, Iraq. History shows that it is the oldest disease in mankind. According to the International Committee on Taxonomy of Viruses, the rabies virus is found in many hosts and is associated with human fatality, thus having a high risk around the globe. Further, the World Health Organization estimates indicate that dogs are the major vectors of human rabies responsible for more than 95% reported cases, 56,000 deaths worldwide and 20,000 deaths in India every year. Although vaccines have been developed in the nineteenth century, in the twenty-first century, this virus is still enzootic in many parts of the world, with India being no exception. Even today, rabies remains one of the most serious, distressing
* Ms. Suchismita Behera, PhD Scholar from Institute of Life Sciences, Bhubaneswar, is pursuing her research on “Identification and Characterization of Differentially Expressed Proteins during Rabies Pathogenesis”. Her popular science story entitled “Rabies- Removed or Re-Emerging !!!” has been selected for AWSAR Award.