The zoonotic Langya virus, also known as LayV is a new infection strain found in at least 35 people in two provinces in China. According to Taiwan Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), the contagion was recorded in the Henan and Shandong regions of the mainland.
Investigation into the primary infections indicated that the cases were scattered and had no sign of community transmission, and the infections were sporadic.
Full name: Zoonotic Langya virus
Symptoms: fever, fatigue, a cough, loss of appetite, muscle pain, nausea, headache, and vomiting
Transmission: Most likely is transmitted from animals to humans.
Cure: Human infections could be monitored
Vaccine: Still in testing
What is Zoonotic Langya Virus?
The Zoonotic Langya virus or LayV is a new animal-derived henipavirus that is mostly transferred from animal to animal. However, after 35 human infections were reported in China, health experts are now concerned about its human-associated transmission. Meanwhile, the test results of 25 wild animal species suggested that a small insectivorous mammal resembling a mouse, called a shrew, might be the natural host of the Langya henipavirus. The virus was reportedly spotted in about 27% of the tested shrew subjects, the CDC official said.
This comes as China is struggling to stop sporadic coronavirus outbreaks, beginning with Hebei earlier this year. Adhering to the zero-COVID Policy, Beijing announced a series of strict lockdowns, pushing 11 million people in the province to remain at home. Eventually, Shanghai reported a fresh flare-up in cases, forcing Beijing to impose stringent measures on residents. On Monday, Xi Jinping-led Chinese government issued curbs on the coastal city of Sanya following a COVID outbreak, trapping at least 80,000 tourists.
Zoonotic Langya virus: Symptoms
The 26 patients developed symptoms including fever, fatigue, a cough, loss of appetite, muscle pain, nausea, headache, and vomiting. They also showed a decrease in white blood cells. low platelet count, liver failure, and kidney failure.
Zoonotic Langya virus: Possibility of human-to-human transmission
- According to the Taipei Times, the virus can cause renal and hepatic failure and most likely is transmitted from animals to humans.
- Chuang said the 35 patients in China did not have close contact with each other or a common exposure history, and contact tracing showed no viral transmission among close contacts and family, suggesting that human infections might be sporadic.
Vaccine & Cure
Since Langya virus is a newly detected virus and therefore, Taiwan’s laboratories will require a standardized nucleic acid testing method to identify the virus, so that human infections could be monitored, if needed.
