In this episode of viroLOGICAL, Florian Krammer explains the Marburg virus, a filovirus closely related to Ebola that causes severe hemorrhagic fever. He discusses how the virus is structured, how it enters cells, how it is transmitted from animals and between humans, and why infection is associated with very high mortality. The episode also covers the typical course of the disease, historical outbreaks from Europe to Africa, the role of bats as a natural reservoir, and why—despite its severity—Marburg virus is unlikely to cause a pandemic due to limited human-to-human transmission.

Washington Post article about bats and Marburg virus in caves in Uganda: https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/national/wp/2018/12/13/feature/these-bats-carry-the-lethal-marburg-virus-and-scientists-are-tracking-them-to-try-to-stop-its-spread/

Article about a US tourist who got infected in one of the bat caves: https://www.cidrap.umn.edu/ebola/american-traveler-survived-marburg-fever-cdc-says

Nature article about animals feeding on Marburg virus infected bats: https://www.nature.com/articles/d44148-025-00221-2

US CDC information about Marburg virus: https://www.cdc.gov/marburg/about/index.html

Video of bats and snakes in a cave in Uganda: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iw_sHKXtBZs

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Krammer laboratory information

Krammer Laboratory at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai

Ludwig Boltzmann Institute for Science Outreach and Pandemic Preparedness

Ignaz Semmelweis Institute

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Conflict of interest statement

The Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai has filed patent applications relating to influenza virus vaccines and therapeutics, SARS-CoV-2 serological assays and NDV-based SARS-CoV-2 vaccines which name me as inventor. Mount Sinai has spun out a company, CastleVax, to commercialize NDV-based SARS-CoV-2 vaccines and I am named as co-founder and scientific advisory board member of that company.

I have previously consulted for Curevac, Merck, Gritstone, Sanofi, Seqirus, GSK and Pfizer and I am currently consulting for 3rd Rock Ventures (US) and Avimex (Mexico).

My laboratory has been collaborating in the past with Pfizer on animal models of SARS-CoV-2 and with GlaxoSmithKline and VIR on the development of influenza virus vaccines and therapeutics and we are currently collaborating with Dynavax, Inspirevax and Inimmune on development of influenza virus vaccines.

My work in the on immunity and infectious diseases in the US is supported by the National Institutes of Health, but also by FluLab and Tito’s Handmade Vodka. In the past I have also received funding from the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, PATH and the US Department of Defense.

My work in Austria is supported by the Ludwig Boltzmann Gesellschaft and by the Ignaz Semmelweis Institute through the Medical University of Vienna.