Isle of Plagues Theory

In 1967 when the first outbreak of Marburg occurred in Germany, the monkey trading company from which the infected monkeys came from were supposedly killing off the infected monkeys before shipment. However, a source from the trading company that was interviewed in Richard Preston's book "The Hot Zone" stated that the monkey's were being shipped and released on an Island of Lake Victoria near Entebbe to use as a backup if shipments were short. This theory relates the notion that this island became a breeding ground for infectious monkeys and could very well be the location were these filoviruses and other viruses such as AIDS made their mutations which enabled them to jump into the human population. Kasensero, a city on the edge of Lake Victoria, is considered one the epicenters of the AIDS emergence into the human species.

While the theory has very logical and applicable concepts behind, no "Isle of Plagues" has been found by researchers or virologists. However, the does this island exist? and if so where in Lake Victoria does it rest? Finding the answers to these question, would bring us one step closer to finding the natural host of the filoviruses and perhaps vaccines to them and AIDS as well. Only time shall tell, until then we must sit and wonder where these deadly viruses will strike next.






This page is maintained by Dickie Gipson, for comments or questions e-mail The Brain.



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