Russian Scientist Dies After Ebola Virus Infection

A Russian scientist who worked at a former Soviet biological weapons facility died earlier this month after accidentally infecting herself with the Ebola virus, the New York Times reported today (see GSN, March 4).

Officials at the laboratory, the State Research Center of Virology and Biotechnology, said that the scientist had been working on an Ebola vaccine when she stuck herself with a needle carrying the virus on May 5. 

The laboratory, known as Vector, did not report the incident to the World Health Organization until last week, according to the Times.  Scientists said that even though Vector isolated the scientist to prevent the spread of the disease and that there was no requirement to report accidents involving the virus, the delay meant that WHO scientists were unable to provide information on treatments that could have saved the scientist’s life (Judith Miller, New York Times, May 25).

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