What is the virus that has claimed the most lives in human history and what is the status on that virus today?
97044
Far from the deadliest epidemic.\n\nThe Bubonic Plague. \n\nJust mention the name and you will send shivers down the spine of many people. \n\nThere is no doubt that this disease was deadly. Deadly and gruesome to watch. \n\nThe death rate was 90% for those exposed to the bacterium. It was transmitted by the fleas from infected Old English black rats. The symptoms were clear: swollen lymph nodes (buboes, hence the name), high fever, and delirium. In the worst case, the lungs became infected and the pneumonic form was spread from person to person by coughing, sneezing, or simply talking. \n\nFrom the time of infection to death was less than one week. \n\nThere were three major epidemics - in the 6th, 14th, and 17th centuries. \n\nThe death toll was 137 million victims. \n\nAs a result, the plague is considered to be the worst epidemic of all time, but it wasn't (not that we are downplaying the severity of the plague). \n\nAt its worst, the bubonic plague killed 2 million victims a year. \n\nThis is certainly a bad situation, but there is one that is worse. \n\nThe pandemic (an epidemic that is spread worldwide) that killed at least 25 million people in one year. \n\nA disease that is largely forgotten. \n\nA disease that occurred in the 20th century! \n\nI know what you're thinking - AID's, Syphilis, or the dreaded Ebola. \n\nAll are wrong. \n\nIt was the influenza of 1918-1919, right after World War I (the war killed 9 million men in 4 years) \n\nThis was no minor disease - everyone on the planet was at risk. \n\nAnd it was started right here in the good old U. S. of A. \n\nIn one year, nearly twenty million cases were reported in the United States, accounting for almost one million deaths. \n\nThe cause is still unknown, but is believed to have been a mutated swine virus. \n\nIt all started on the morning of March 11, 1918 at Camp Funston, Kansas. \n\nA company cook named Albert Mitchell reported to the infirmary with typical flu-like symptoms - a low-grade fever, mild sore throat, slight headache, and muscle aches. Bed rest was recommended. \n\nBy noon, 107 soldiers were sick. \n\nWithin two days, 522 people were sick. Many were gravely ill with severe pneumonia. \n\nThen reports started coming in from other military bases around the country. \n\nThousands of sailors docked off the East Coast were sick. \n\nWithin a week, the influenza was hitting isolated places, such as the island of Alcatraz. \n\nWhatever the cause, it was clearly airborne. \n\nWithin seven days, every state in the Union had been infected. \n\nThen it spread across the Atlantic. \n\nBy April, French troops and civilians were infected. \n\nBy mid-April, the disease had spread to China and Japan. \n\nBy May, the virus was spread throughout Africa and South America. \n\nThe actual killer was the pneumonia that accompanied the infection. \n\nIn Philadelphia, 158 out of every 1000 people died. 148 out of 1000 in Baltimore. 109 out of 1000 in Washington, D. C.. \n\nThe good news (if there was any) was that the disease peaked within two to three weeks after showing up in a given city. It left as quickly as it arrived. \n\nThe United States death toll was a total of 850,000 people, making it an area of the world that was least devastated by this virus. \n\nSixty percent of the Eskimo population was wiped out in Nome, Alaska. \n\n80-90% of the Samoan population was infected, many of the survivors dying from starvation (they lacked the energy to feed themselves). \n\nLuxury ocean liners from Europe would arrive in New York with 7% less passengers than they embarked with. The confined area of the ship was especially conducive to the spread of the disease. \n\nIn the end, 25 million people had died. Some estimates put the number as high as 37 million. \n\nEighteen months after the disease appeared, the flu bug vanished and has never shown up again. \n\nSo what happened? \n\nUntil recently, no one was really sure.  In March of 1997, the news broke that res
567304
Actually, I've heard the virus was inteentionally released in the first place and there has always been a cure.\n\nCould be just another wild conspiracy theory of course, but who knows?
96373
20,000 additional virus everyday
593971
For: They can be classified as living beings because they contain either DNA or RNA and/or a protein coat. The DNA/RNA are components of all living organisms and hence virus having a component present in the living organisms can be called as a living thing.\n\nAgainst: On the other hand, virus are "living" only when present in another living organisms or the hosts. When they are present free in the environment they can only be considered as PARTICULATE MATTER which can be "crystallised and preserved". There are some virus only with protein coat and no DNA&#92;RNA.\n\nThus the classification of viruses is very difficult. Hence they have been placed under a different heading as viruses.
890767
Viruses r considered to be a link between living and non-living.Hence,it is not possible to  exclusively categorise them as living beings and hence they cannot be kept under any of the kingdoms.
505150
If you mean most lethal-- rabies -- 100% mortality once you get it.\nAs for one with most suffering -- there are a lot of them-- you can take your choice! To name a few-- AIDS, Terminal malignancy, extensive burns, Advanced arthritis, Chronic renal failure. Osteogenesis imperfecta -----
163801
H10N7 \n\nIn 2004 in Egypt H10N7 is reported for the first time in humans. It caused illness in two infants in Egypt. One child’s father is a poultry merchant
559758
ITS A VIRUS!!!!\nRUN FOR YOUR LIVES!!!!
287035
The ZOMBIE is right,IT IS INTERESTING;) \nCurrent International Research suggests that the virus is killed within seconds of reaching 70 degree C. Avoid food that conatins raw meat or eggs!any properly cooked chicken or egg poses no threat!\n\nBon Apetit
1124393
Start by reading the texts.  We did not descend from chimps.  We evolved from a common ancestor.\n\nWe share more DNA with Bonobo Chimps than we do with Neanderthal.\n\nLooking for predictions is interesting but not likely to be helpful.  First the rate of genetic mutation in DNA is known. \n\nSecond, there is no telling what evolutionary pressures will cause an expression of a gene to reflect a mutation ahead of the event.\n\nThird, given all of the mutagenic chemicals used in so many facets of production and general living, it is hard to make the prediction you ask for.\n\nConsider these: \n\nIn fewer than 70 years our ability to use penicillin and many of the early antibiotics is severely diminished.  in fact there are strains of bacteria that are completely resistant to some antibiotics (i.e: vancomycin resistant enterococus = VRE). As people improperly use antibiotics, new and hardier strains of bacteria emerge.\n\nThe thre most devistating epidemics in human history were variation of the inlfuenza.  The first is the Spanish Flu of 1918 which killed more people in 18 months than WWI, or (24 years of AIDS).  Here is what the WHO says about all three (Spanish Flu, Asian Flu, and Hong Kong Flu).\n\nPandemic influenza\n\nThree times in the last century, the influenza A viruses have undergone major genetic changes mainly in their H-component, resulting in global pandemics and large tolls in terms of both disease and deaths. The most infamous pandemic was “Spanish Flu” which affected large parts of the world population and is thought to have killed at least 40 million people in 1918-1919. More recently, two other influenza A pandemics occurred in 1957 (“Asian influenza”) and 1968 (“Hong Kong influenza”) and caused significant morbidity and mortality globally. In contrast to current influenza epidemics, these pandemics were associated with severe outcomes also among healthy younger persons, albeit not on such a dramatic scale as the “Spanish flu” where the death rate was highest among healthy young adults.\n\nMost recently, limited outbreaks of a new influenza subtype A(H5N1) directly transmitted from birds to humans have occurred in Hong Kong Special Administrative Region of China in 1997 and 2003.
939351
The evillest thing about viruses is that they cannot really die, and retroviruses especially, they can inject their own DNA into yours, and your body won't realize it and will accept its DNA.
799101
Rhinovirus (from the Greek rhin-, which means "nose") is a genus of the Picornaviridae family of viruses. \nRhinoviruses are the most common viral infective agents in humans, and a causative agent of the common cold.
197948
Scientists have been debating for years whether viruses are alive, and it all depends what is the definition of "alive". Viruses in general are a combined set of primarily proteins and nucleic acids. They do not have metabolism, they do not feed, they just multiply when they are inside their host cell. Therefore, it looks like they are not alive, 'cause they're only alive as much as their host is. But if you come to think of it, it is true for every living organism. Let's take humans, for example. We do not float in space, but live in an ecosystem - we eat plants and animals, we breath the oxygen produced by photosyntesizing organisms etc. If they all disappear... we die. \nSo ... viruses are not alive, 'cause they depend of their host? Then... we do too. Only our host is a system of organisms, and it is far more complicated.\nBottomline: whether viruses are alive or not depends where you draw the line.
142732
Smallpox, definitely. It was responsible for around 300-500 million people in the 20th century alone (and its been around way longer than that). Smallpox was eradicated in 1979, but there are still cultures of it here in the U.S. and in Russia.
1103390
The biggest threat to humanity is inhumanity. But picking from your list I'd say viruses top the list of recurring real threats. For the more theoretical ones I'd say most catastrophic: 1) invasion by unfriendly aliens 2) meteors 3) advanced AI. Most likely: 1) advanced AI 2) meteors 3) alien invasion. Not too concerned about warfare, we've had a long history of dealing with that. Also not too concerned about climate change, we can come up with technology to deal with that.
778768
It's highly unlikely, for the simple reason that it's not in the interests of a parasite to kill its host. It's far more beneficial to make the host sick instead, and even better if the host shows no outward signs of infection but continues cranking out parasites.\n\nThe most deadly virus of all time, the 1918 H1N1 flu, is in common circulation today -- in fact, you have probably been infected by it! However, its virulence and deadliness have dropped dramatically so it's no longer an exceptionally lethal virus. This is precisely what is expected.
96926
GO TO:\nhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Virus