Ask A Scientist© Biology Archive

 
Question:  Can smallpox be cultured from the cells of a cadaver of a person who died 
of the disease?  In general, what happens to a pathogen locked within the cells of a 
deceased host?  Does the pathogen always die with the host, or can it retain viability 
for hours/days/decades after the host has died?

Answer:  There is little threat of a smallpox epidemic in the future, as we have fairly 
successfully eradicated it from the face of the earth.  As far as viability in the dead 
body of a host, the viral particle can remain viable for a certain amount of time, but 
with the burial of the body, the virus cannot spread, and in time deteriorates from 
natural decay.  Since it has been many years since a smallpox outbreak, digging up 
the corpse of a victim poses little threat to anyone.
--Wordsworth