Journal of microbiology, epidemiology and immunobiologyJournal of microbiology, epidemiology and immunobiologyЖурнал микробиологии, эпидемиологии и иммунобиологии0372-93112686-7613Central Research Institute for Epidemiology120810.36233/0372-9311-273REVIEWSОБЗОРЫReview ArticleMarburg virus and the disease it causesВирус Марбург и вызываемое им заболеваниеhttps://orcid.org/0000-0001-5996-3985MarkinVladimir A.МаркинВладимир Александрович
Russian Federation

D. Sci. (Med.), senior researcher, leading researcher

д.м.н., с.н.с., в.н.с.

vamarkin72@gmail.com48 Central Research Institute of the Ministry of Defense of the Russian Federation48 Центральный научно-исследовательский институт Министерства обороны Российской Федерации0712202299560561828042022Copyright ©; 2022, Markin V.A.Copyright ©; 2022, Маркин В.А.2022Markin V.A.Маркин В.А.https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0https://microbiol.crie.ru/jour/article/view/1208

Over the 50 years since its discovery, many properties of the Marburg virus have been studied, but no reliable medical remedies of preventing and treating the infection it causes have been developed, although it can potentially cause large-scale epidemics.

Marburg fever is relevant due to the risk of importation to other countries. The source of infection in nature is bats (reservoir) and monkeys (intermediate host), and the routes of transmission are aerosol, contact and alimentary. The mortality rate in recent outbreaks has reached 90%. In convalescents the causative agent was identified in tears, semen, and liver biopsies weeks and months after recovery.

The lack of therapeutic and prophylactic antiviral drugs, high rates of mortality, infectivity, the ability of aerosol contamination, and a high epidemic potential all together define Marburg fever as a serious global threat to international health. The development of medical protection against this infection should be an urgent task of ensuring the biological safety of the population of the Russian Federation.

The most promising ways to develop vaccines against Marburg fever are the construction of recombinants based on adenovirus, vesicular stomatitis virus or alphavirus replicon, DNA vaccines. A reliable protective effect of the chemotherapy drug remdesivir in combination with human antibodies, as well as an etiotropic drug with an antisense mechanism of action and an interferon inducer has been shown. In model experiments with pseudovirus, fundamentally new ways of developing pathogen inhibitors were found — preventing its exit from cells, as well as the construction of anti-gene-binding Fab fragments that inhibit the synthesis of viral RNA.

За 50 лет с момента открытия изучены многие свойства вируса Марбург, но надёжных медицинских средств профилактики и лечения вызываемой им инфекции не разработано, хотя он потенциально может вызвать крупномасштабные эпидемии.

Лихорадка Марбург актуальна в связи с риском заноса в другие страны. Источник инфекции в природе — летучие мыши (резервуар) и обезьяны (промежуточный хозяин), а пути передачи — аэрозольный, контактный и алиментарный. Уровень летальности в последних вспышках достигал 90%. Возбудитель выявляли у реконвалесцентов в слезах, сперме и биопсийных материалах печени через недели и месяцы после выздоровления.

Отсутствие лечебно-профилактических противовирусных препаратов, высокие показатели летальности, инфекциозности, способность аэрозольного заражения, высокий эпидемический потенциал в совокупности определяют лихорадку Марбург как серьёзную глобальную угрозу международному здравоохранению. Разработка средств медицинской защиты от данной инфекции должна быть насущной задачей обеспечения биологической безопасности населения России.

Наиболее перспективные пути разработки вакцин против лихорадки Марбург — конструирование рекомбинантов на основе аденовируса, вируса везикулярного стоматита или альфавирусного репликона, ДНК-вакцины. Показано достоверное защитное действие химиопрепарата ремдесивир в сочетании с человеческими антителами, а также этиотропного препарата с антисмысловым механизмом действия и индуктора интерферона. В модельных опытах с псевдовирусом найдены принципиально новые пути разработки ингибиторов возбудителя — препятствие выходу его из клеток, а также конструирование антигенсвязывающих Fab-фрагментов, ингибирующих синтез вирусной РНК.

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