Agent is classified as a Filovirus.
The only other member of this class of viruses is ebola virus. An acute highly fatal disease first described in Marburg, Germany in 1967. Brought to Marburg in a shipment of infected African Green Monkeys from Uganda. 31 people were affected and 7 died in 1967. No disease occurred in people who handled only intact animals or those who wore gloves and protective clothing when handling tissues.