SMALL POX

What Is It?

• Smallpox were an infectious disease causes by the virus- Variloa Major or Variola Minor
• Spiky and brick shaped.
• 200-400 nanometers
• This attacks mostly the blood vessels of the skin, mouth, and throat.

HOW DOES IT SPREAD?

• Through face to face contact of the person
• Direct contact with the infected persons saliva or nasal mucus
• Direct contact with the infected persons bodily fluid
• Direct contact with the contaminated objects (clothes, bedding, etc.)
• Spread in the air through the persons breath or cough (unlikely)

SYMPTOMS

• Like other viruses, this needs to grow inside a host cell
• Multiply rapidly
• Takes about 12 days for the virus to evade the bloodstream in large #'s

SYMPTOMS- EARLY STAGES

• 2-4 days within contact of virus
• Muscle pain
• High fever
• Headache
• Vomiting and nausea

SYMPTOMS- LATE STAGES

• 12-15 days after contact with virus
• Rash spreads to the whole face
• Red spots on the mouth, tongue, palate, and throat
• The spots rapidly enlarge and rupture
• Blisters

HISTORY

• Evidence of small pox in Egyptian mummies
• Historical records found the disease in China and India
• Spread into Southeast Asia
• By the 16th century, the disease spread well into Europe
• Disease settled in the Americas through the colonization

DEMOGRAPHICS

• By mid- 18th century, the disease spread everywhere in the world
• Well, except for Australia and many small islands
• Was worst in Europe
• More common there
• Was the leading cause of death in Europe

LET'S FIGHT THE VIRUS

• The body first detects the virus as "unfamiliar"
• This activates the B cells
• The B cells start multiplying rapidly
• The B cells also produce antibodies that fight the virus
• The B cells must multiply faster than the virus in order to "win"

FIGHTING THE VIRUS CONT.

• B cells are like memory cells
• They remember the virus for next time
• They can properly "arm" themselves
• They can destroy the virus before you even feel sick

LEUKOCYTES

• The main leukocyte that comes into play here is the lymphocyte
• This targets the B cells talked about in the previous slide

VACCINES

• Small pox aren't around anymore
• We don't need a vaccine
• But back then they used the vaccine for cowpox
• The two viruses were very similar and the vaccine worked for each

NONSPECIFIC IMMUNITY

• Mostly just holds off the virus rather than preventing it completely
• Skin barrier
• Saliva (enzyme)
• Tears (enzyme)
• Even mucus