Britannica
Sources used in this answer
How is Ebola related to Marburg virus?
Created from Britannica articles
using AI.
AI can make mistakes, so verify using Britannica articles.
Ebola
Numerous filamentous ebolavirus particles (blue) budding from a chronically-infected VERO E6 cell (yellow-green) in this digitally colorized scanning electron micrograph produced by the U.S. National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID).
Ebola and Marburg viruses are closely related, as both belong to the same viral family, Filoviridae. Within this family, they are classified into two distinct genera: Ebolavirus and Marburgvirus.123
These viruses share several key characteristics:
- Structure: Both are filoviruses, characterized by enveloped, filamentous virions that contain a single strand of negative-sense RNA.13
- Pathology: Both are among the most dangerous human pathogens, causing severe and often fatal hemorrhagic fevers characterized by high fatality rates. The disease progression and symptoms, such as fever, vomiting, diarrhea, and internal bleeding, are similar for both Ebola virus disease and Marburg virus disease.132
- Origins: Both are considered zoonotic, with evidence suggesting that fruit bats serve as natural reservoirs for these viruses.13
While they are closely related, they are distinct entities; Marburgvirus was the first genus of the family to be described, following its discovery in 1967, while the first strain of Ebolavirus was identified in 1976.13