Ebola virus

After the Ebola virus was discovered, two noblemen, Ozwell E. Spencer and Edward Ashford decided to study the it. Spencer thought that it would be an efficient bio-weapon due to its 90% death rate. Ashford wanted to use its regenerative abilities for the medicine. Both them obtained samples of the virus, circumventing the fictional Biological Weapons Prohibition Pact by claiming that they were researching it in order to find a cure. The virus proved unsuitable for Spencer, as it cannot survive for long outside of a human host, and is extremely vulnerable to UV radiation (photosensitivity). It also kills its host rapidly, and is only contagious through direct contact, severely limiting its ability to spread. In 1950, Spencer and Ashford discovered the Progenitor Virus, while they were studying the virus. This new virus was the beggining of Spencer's bio-weapon project. In the 60s, Umbrella was founded to hide this project.