Langya Henipavirus Reported In China, 35 People Infected, Alert Issued: Report

Zoonotic Langya virus: Taiwan's CDC Deputy Director General Chuang Jen-hsiang said on Sunday that according to a study, the virus has not been reported from human to human.

Residents and tourists queue to undergo nucleic acid tests for the Covid-19 coronavirus in Sanya in China's southern Hainan province (Source: File photo/AFP)

New Delhi: After the outbreak of COVID-19 and Monkeypox, China confirmed 35 human infections with the zoonotic Langya virus (LayV). According to Taiwan Center for Disease Control (TCDC), this virus named Zoonotic Langya has been found in the Shandong and Henan provinces of China and Taiwan will adopt a new method to monitor and detect this virus, which has been named Nucleic Acid Testing Method, said media reports according to the news agency ANI.

What is Zoonotic Langya Virus?

Taiwan's CDC Deputy Director General Chuang Jen-hsiang said on Sunday that according to a study, the virus has not been reported from human to human. However, he also said that he is yet to determine whether the virus can spread between humans or not.

He asked people to pay close attention to further updates about the virus. Giving information about the serological survey conducted on domestic animals, he said that two percent of the goats tested and five percent of the dogs tested were found positive. The CDC's deputy DG said that the test results of 25 wild animal species suggest that even a small rat-like mammal can cause the spread of Langya henipavirus, as reported by ANI.

Chuang said that the 35 people found infected in China did not have close contact with each other. He told that symptoms of fever, fatigue, cough, loss of appetite, muscle pain, headache and vomiting were seen in 26 infected. 

Apart from this, complaints of low platelets, liver failure and kidney failure have also been reported. As far as the coronavirus in China is concerned, the residents of Shanghai have faced an unprecedented lockdown due to China's zero-covid policy. Several videos leaked on social media have confirmed gross violations of human rights.