China virus alert! Newly-detected tick-borne virus can damage brain
The tick-borne virus belongs to a group of viruses which is famous for getting transmitted by ticks
(Web Desk) - After coronavirus, a new virus called Wetland Virus (WELV) has now been found in China, and it can easily infect humans through tick bites, impact brains and lead to neurological disease in some cases.
In June 2019, WELV was first identified in a 61-year-old Jinzhou patient who had fallen ill after getting bitten by ticks in the wetlands in Inner Mongolia.
As per a report published in The New England Journal of Medicine, the patient, after getting infected by the virus, suffered from fever, headache, and vomiting and also developed symptoms resistant to antibiotics.
The tick-borne virus belongs to a group of viruses which is famous for getting transmitted by ticks. These viruses can cause severe illness in humans, like the Crimean-Congo hemorrhagic fever virus.
After the virus' initial discovery, a thorough investigation was conducted by the researchers and nearly 14,600 ticks were collected from different locations in northern China and it was discovered that 2 per cent of them tested positive for WELV genetic material.
The doctors also detected the virus in sheep, horses, pigs, and rodents, known as Transbaikal zokor.
The virus was known to cause cytopathic effects in human umbilical vein endothelial cells and also led to deadly infections in animal models.
The researchers further analysed blood samples collected from forest rangers in the region and found antibodies to WELV in around 12 out of 640 individuals.
After testing more patients with tick bites, 20 people were found positive for the virus and had symptoms like fever, dizziness, headache, nausea and diarrhoea.
As per the reports, one patient also went into a coma because of high white blood cell counts in the brain and spinal fluid.
Even though all patients recovered after treatment, in the lab experiments carried out on mice it was observed that the virus can lead to lethal infections and also affect the nervous system, especially the brain.
"Taken together, these data suggest that a newly discovered orthonairovirus, WELV, is [pathogenic] to humans … and circulates among humans, ticks and various animals in northeastern China," stated the researchers.
"Improving surveillance and detection for emerging orthonairoviruses will allow a better understanding of the effect that these viruses have on human health," they added.
