Explained | What is the nature of Langya, the new zoonotic virus identified in China?
The HinduThe story so far: A new zoonotic virus that has evolved to infect humans was identified in China in August. On August 4, the New England Journal of Medicine described the virus called Langya, reported in patients in Eastern China. In a letter published in NEJM, a team of researchers from China and Singapore led by Xiao-Ai Zhang, Hao Li, et al say: “In our study, a newly identified henipavirus of probable animal origin was associated with febrile illness, a finding that warrants further investigation to better understand associated human illness.” The pathogen belongs to the henipavirus family, closely associated with Nipah and Hendra viruses, and was noticed to cause fever, and respiratory symptoms among 35 people in China since 2018. Subsequent investigations identified 35 patients with acute LayV infection in the Shandong and Henan provinces of China, the communique explains. To determine the source or animal origin of the infection, since the patients, mostly farmers, revealed close exposure to animals before they fell sick, scientists drew blood from farm animals and small animals.
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