Abstract
Every Ebola outbreak is most likely the result of independent zoonotic events. More than four decades after the first identification of the Ebola virus, its reservoir remains unknown. We have shown in this work that the prevalence of Ebola virus in wildlife was very low with antibodies against Ebola virus (Zaire and / or Sudan) detected in less than 1% of bats tested in the DRC, Guinea and Cameroon; and 0% in non-human primates from the DRC, Cote d'Ivoire and Cameroon, during inter-epidemic period. No antibodies were detected in samples collected during the epidemic period in the DRC, and the search for Ebola RNA in these studies was negative. Nevertheless, we have confirmed and characterized in humans, new variants of the Ebola virus which caused the recent outbreaks of 2018 in the DRC. Early and ongoing genomic sequencing has been used to guide public health interventions.Thus, despite the presence of antibodies to the Ebola virus, the role of bats as a reservoir species remains unclear, as the detection of viral RNA is still rare. Ebola virus antibodies are very rare in non-human primates, confirming that PNH are not reservoir species. Efforts to recover the reservoir of this virus must continue because it is the only way that will allow us to effectively prevent future outbreaks.