What is rabies and what causes it?

Rabies is an infectious disease that spreads from animals to humans. The rabies virus causes the disease by infecting nerves in animals and people. The rabies virus travels to the brain (through nerves inside the brain), the virus reproduces, and then it travels back through the nerves to most parts of the body. Eventually, the virus reaches the salivary glands where it is released into the saliva in the mouth. By this time, the disease has usually damaged the brain, sometimes producing violent behaviour. It eventually causes death.

How long does it take for rabies […]

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