China's Wuhan Institute of Virology — the laboratory that has faced intense scrutiny over the origin of the COVID-19 pandemic — is offering to help India respond to a Nipah virus outbreak that officials in New Delhi say is on the verge of containment.
Wuhan researchers say an orally administered antiviral drug they developed for the Wuhan coronavirus, known as VV116, is also a "promising candidate for treating the Nipah virus."
In preclinical testing, the drug was evaluated in golden hamsters infected with Nipah. The researchers said the animals' survival rate increased by more than 66% after receiving VV116, and that the medicine reduced viral loads in the lungs, spleens, and brains of the test subjects — organs commonly affected by severe Nipah infections.
"This finding is the first to demonstrate the therapeutic potential of VV116 against Nipah virus," the institute said in a statement on Monday. "It can be used not only as a preventive drug for high-risk groups such as healthcare workers and laboratory workers, but also as a readily available drug option for dealing with current and future Nipah virus outbreaks."
A Chinese pharmaceutical company, Vigonvita Life Science Co., said the early data was encouraging and it is prepared to move into clinical trials, a necessary step before any possible approval.
There is currently no licensed drug treatment for Nipah.
According to the World Health Organization, the virus' fatality rate is estimated to be between 40% and 75%.
Nipah was first identified during an outbreak in Malaysia and Singapore in 1998 and 1999. Since then, outbreaks have been reported in South and Southeast Asia, including Bangladesh, India, the Philippines, and Singapore.
Early symptoms can resemble those of less-severe illnesses — including high fever, headaches, coughing, vomiting, and sore throat — before Nipah can progress to swelling of the brain and spinal cord, causing encephalitis, meningitis, or both.
With an incubation period of about four to 21 days, people can be infected for days before the most dangerous complications emerge, and survivors may suffer lasting neurological damage.
Nipah is zoonotic, meaning it spreads from animals to humans. Fruit bats are considered the primary reservoir.
The virus can pass from bats to animals such as pigs, goats, and sheep, and then to humans through exposure, including consumption of contaminated meat or fruit products tainted by bat secretions.
Human-to-human transmission can also occur through close contact and bodily fluids.
Indian officials have reported two confirmed Nipah cases in West Bengal since December.
On Wednesday, India's Health Ministry said 196 contacts of infected people had been traced, quarantined, and tested. While it did not disclose their status, the ministry said no further infections have been detected and the outbreak appears contained.
"The situation is under constant monitoring, and all necessary public health measures are in place," the Indian Health Ministry said.
The WHO told China's state-run Global Times on Tuesday it considers the risk of wider spread from the outbreak low, with no evidence of increased human-to-human transmission in India.
"It is possible that further exposure to Nipah virus could occur, given the known reservoir of Nipah virus in bat populations in some part of India and Bangladesh, including West Bengal," a WHO official said. "Community awareness of risk factors such as consumption of date palm sap needs to be strengthened."
Nicole Weatherholtz ✉
Nicole Weatherholtz, a Newsmax general assignment reporter covers news, politics, and culture. She is a National Newspaper Association award-winning journalist.
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