New virus killed four in SA
2008-10-27 22:31
Washington - A mysterious
hemorrhagic disease that has killed four people in South
Africa and forced others into isolation appears to be a
never-before-seen strain of a virus known as an arenavirus, an
expert said on Monday.
Genetic testing indicates the virus is a new type of
arenavirus - a large family of viruses that include the germs
that cause Lassa fever and the mouse-borne lymphocytic
choriomeningitis virus, said Dr Ian Lipkin of Columbia
University in New York.
The virus causes hemorrhagic disease - meaning it can
cause internal and external bleeding. The first victim was a
woman from Zambia flown to South Africa for treatment.
A
paramedic who accompanied her as well as a cleaner and nurse from the clinic where
she was taken, also died.
Genetic tests
Samples from the patients were sent to the US Centres for
Disease Control and Prevention and to Lipkin's lab in New York,
where genetic tests are used to find new microbes.
The standard way to identify viruses is by growing them in
a lab dish, but this method misses many viruses and some simply
cannot be cultured, Lipkin said.
"We don't know why it is so pathogenic. It is a new virus,
not like Lassa," Lipkin told a news conference at a meeting of
infectious disease experts.
The virus is not related to certain other viruses that can
cause hemorrhagic disease, such as Ebola or dengue.
South African officials say they are monitoring more than
100 people who may have come into contact with the patients.
Lipkin said the common antiviral drug ribavirin appears to
help treat the disease.
- Reuters