A team of scientists has discovered a new type of genipavirus in China that has already infected at least 35 people. Chinese news portal Pengpai reports.
The new genipavirus was named Langya.
«This virus belongs to the same genus as the Nipah virus and, so far, these cases have not been fatal or very serious. Therefore, it is fair to say that (we) should be vigilant and not panic about the new virus,» one of the researchers, Professor Wang Linfa from the School of Medicine of the National University of Singapore, said.
Symptoms of infection with the new virus include fever, fatigue, cough, anorexia, myalgia, nausea and vomiting. It has not yet been established whether Langya can be transmitted from person to person.
In the wild, the Langya virus most often (27 percent of 262 animals studied) was found in shrews. Antibodies to it were found in some dogs and goats.
So far, two types of genipaviruses have been known to infect humans, Nipah and Hendra. Bats are considered to be their carriers.
