This selection may come off as an interesting one… and of ALL the art books available to choose from… This book got me thinking about the bridge of biology and art, which provides very provocative imagery and thought. See: Luke Jerram. Beautiful glass sculptures, mirroring Microbiology.
This true story stays with you, and chills you to the bone marrow. It taps into a primal fear of organisms and molecules that can absolutely wreak havoc on our immune systems and wipe out entire villages of people. You might say its biological population control, a real possibility. I had heard about an Ebola outbreak here in the US as a kid; my mom read this book and was really disturbed by the notion of biology as outbreak or even warfare. Having lived in Washington, DC, I was amazed at how such an occurrence happened very nearby in Reston, VA. So I read the book.
The author, a scientist on the front lines of the filovirus outbreak, takes us to KitumCave, in Mt. Elgon National Park, Kenya, where a group of hikers contracted a devastating and incurable virus.
Several villages had been quarantined so that the outbreak would “flesh out”, rather than spread. Once the virus had “taken over” its host, both the host and virus would die. The CDC sent researchers to the site of the cave as well as doctors to some of the rural African (where?) villages. The virus found its way to the US through a shipment of monkeys captured in Africa that were sent to Walter Reed Army Institute of Research. The monkeys were monitored very closely, used for research, and were euthanized at the conclusion of the studies. Researchers noticed that a few monkeys began to show symptoms of a serious illness, one which made them go mad, and wreaked havoc on their bodies. The monkeys, cage by cage, became ill and several were dying. This was a concern because the virus affected primates, and humans are considered primates. Soon thereafter, a few monkeys escaped from their cages and attacked one of the lab workers, who then contracted the disease. The lab became an official Level 4 “hot zone”.
Having said all of this, it was a bit of a fear factor; however, a quite fascinating one. For curiosity’s sake, it was incredibly fascinating to learn the details of the notorious Ebola strain and its place in history. I couldn't put the book down. This story highlighted something very important about human interaction. It touched upon how connected our world is and how we are linked through biology. The formation of cells gives new life, prolongs life, changes the course of life’s journey, and can also end life. It is a life cycle that makes our world beautiful, troubling, interesting, complex, and connected.