08/10/2022 11:53 (act 08/10/2022 11:53)
Researchers have discovered a new virus in China. ©Photo by CNS/AFP
A new virus has broken out in China, dozens of people are already infected. The pathogen can trigger organ failure.
In China, 35 people contracted a newly detected henipa virus. In Shangdong and Henan provinces, infections with the pathogen known as Langya henipavirus (LayV) occurred mainly among farmers who had previously been in close contact with the animals. This was reported by a team of scientists from China, Singapore and Australia in the specialist journal “New England Journal of Medicine”.
Researchers discovered new henipavirus in China: 35 infected
The infections were therefore discovered between late 2018 and early 2021. There was no evidence of direct human-to-human transmission. The researchers did not report any deaths.
Of the 35 patients, 26 were infected exclusively with LayV. These patients had symptoms such as fever, fatigue, cough and muscle pain. In some of the patients there was evidence of liver and kidney damage. In animal tests, the virus was mostly discovered in shrews, as researchers around Wei Liu of the Beijing Institute of Microbiology and Epidemiology report.
More research on transmissibility and symptoms
The virus is likely of animal origin and appears only sporadically in humans. However, more studies are needed to better understand the pathogen and the human diseases associated with it.