Nipah Virus: Impact, Origins, and Causes of Emergence

Overview

Journal Curr Infect Dis Rep

Specialty Infectious Diseases

Date 2006 Feb 2

PMID 16448602

Citations 92

Authors

Jonathan H Epstein

Hume E Field

Stephen Luby

Juliet R C Pulliam

Peter Daszak

Affiliations

Soon will be listed here.

Abstract

Nipah virus is an emerging zoonotic pathogen that causes severe febrile encephalitis resulting in death in 40% to 75% of human cases. Nipah virus is considered a biosafety level-4 pathogen and is listed as a select agent with high risk for public health and security due to its high mortality rate in people and the lack of effective vaccines or therapies. The natural reservoir for Nipah virus and related members of the genus Henipavirus are fruit bats of the genus Pteropus. Nipah virus emerged in Malaysia in 1998 as a porcine neurologic and respiratory disease that spread to humans who had contact with live, infected pigs. Research reviewed in this paper suggests that anthropogenic factors, including agricultural expansion and intensification, were the underlying causes of its emergence. Nipah virus has caused five subsequent outbreaks between 2001 and 2005 in Bangladesh. Here, it appears to have spilled over directly from bats to humans, and person-to-person transmission is evident suggesting a heightened public health risk.

Citing Articles

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Bhowmik A, Hasan M, Redoy M, Saha G Sci One Health. 2025; 4:100103.

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Bat adaptations in inflammation and cell death regulation contribute to viral tolerance.

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Influence of Host and Landscape-Associated Factors in the Infection and Transmission of Pathogens: The Case of Directly Transmitted Virus in Mammals.

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Cryo-EM structure of Nipah virus RNA polymerase complex.

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