“The deadliest cave in the world” that may spread the next epidemic

A team of scientists has revealed that Kitum Cave in Kenya, carved with elephant tusks, contains some of the deadliest pathogens known to man.

In 1980, a French engineer died after being infected with the Marburg virus after visiting Kitum Cave, which is located inside an extinct volcano in Mount Elgon National Park in Kenya.

“The connective tissue in his face is dissolving, and his face appears to droop as if it were detaching from the skull,” the book “Description of a Man’s Rapid Decomposition” states.

Seven years after the incident, a Danish schoolboy, who was on vacation with his family, fell victim to Ketum Cave and died from a related hemorrhagic virus, now called the “Raven” virus.

Now, scientists realize that the precious salty minerals found in the cave, which made it a destination not only for elephants, but also buffalo, antelope, leopards and hyenas in western Kenya, have turned Kitum into an incubator for zoonotic diseases.

The US Army Medical Research Institute of Infectious Diseases (USAMRIID) launched an expedition to Kitum Cave after the 1980s incidents, using pressurized and filtered sweat suits, to identify the species responsible for spreading pathogens deadly to humans.

More than a decade later, Marburg virus RNA was discovered in an Egyptian fruit bat (Rousettus aegyptiacus) that was pulled from the cave in July 2007.

Reservoirs of the deadly virus were present in the pregnant female bat's liver, spleen and lung tissue.

Since then, scientists have found huge amounts of protective “type I interferon genes” within Egyptian fruit bats, as well as so-called natural killer (NK) cell receptors.

Microbiologist Tom Kepler explained: “The bat may calm the virus for a short period of time, trying to prevent the growth of the virus without launching a full attack.”

Last year, the World Health Organization deployed a team across Africa, working "in full force" to stop another outbreak of the Marburg virus, which was discovered in other caves across the continent.

He described the "Marburg" virus as the next major epidemic threat. It can be transmitted to humans from fruit bats that live in central Africa.

People can also become infected by touching towels or surfaces that have also been touched by an infected person.

The warning signs initially appear similar to other tropical diseases such as Ebola and malaria. Patients become "ghost-like" and often develop deep-set eyes and expressionless faces.

But in later stages, it leads to bleeding from multiple orifices including the nose, gums, eyes and vagina.

There are no vaccines or approved treatments for the virus, so doctors are forced to rely on medications to relieve symptoms, and fluids to hydrate patients.