Ebola-related virus discovered in bats in Hungary!

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Hungarian researchers detected and isolated the so-called Lloviu virus in bats in Hungary. In laboratory conditions, the virus can infect humans. But in nature, all viruses behave differently. There are a lot of questions, but nobody should be afraid of a pandemic. The discovery is nothing more than a scientific achievement, experts highlighted. Furthermore, we know that it cannot cause infections similar to the Ebola or Marburg viruses.

Nobody should be afraid of the new virus

According to 24.hu, experts are constantly searching for new viruses that might cause similar pandemics as the coronavirus did in the past two years. After seven years of hard work, Hungarian researchers identified a filovirus called Lloviu. That is a distant European relative of the Ebola. However, researchers found the virus in bats living far away from any human settlements in Hungary.

Nobody should be concerned because the virus endangers only bats at the moment.

Researchers are now examining whether it can cause human illnesses. 24.hu asked virologist Gábor Kemenesi, the senior researcher of the János Szentágothai Research Centre at the University of Pécs. He is also the leader of the Lloviu team.

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Researchers have to examine it

Mr Kemenesi said that the virus was previously identified in Italy and is probably present in every country where bent-wing bats live. However, according to their current knowledge, nobody should be concerned about a possible pandemic. The researchers isolated the new virus and are now examining whether it can infect human cells. But even if it does, that does not mean it could infect a human body.

They are working together with American colleagues and found that the new virus cannot cause illnesses like the Ebola or Marburg.

They published their findings in Plos Pathogens. The virus is now on the long list of pathogens that need to be examined to avoid the outbreak of a possible pandemic.

Humanity learned about filoviruses in 1967 when German researchers worked with grivets caught in Africa to develop vaccines in Marburg. However, a deadly virus infected 31 of them, causing the death of seven researchers. The new virus was named after the city. Meanwhile, the Ebola virus was identified in 1976, near the Ebola River, in Congo. Its mortality rate is above 50%, and it continues to generate new waves of the pandemic. Thanks to a new medicine, in 2019, the mortality rate could be reduced to below six pc.

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Humans’ expansion might result in more global pandemics

Filoviruses are present in a variety of animals, from fish to bats. But only these two types can infect humans, the virologist said.

The importance of the discovery is that Hungarian researchers have isolated a filovirus for the first time since 1967 with scientific rigour. Mr Kemensi says that we must pay close attention to filoviruses and learn about them. That is because some types might be able to mutate into deadly versions, as the coronavirus did. Furthermore, it can help us study the Ebola and Marburg viruses.

The new filovirus was detected in bats that are extremely afraid of humans.

However, Mr Kemensi highlighted that we have a chance against such “new” viruses only if we learn about them as much as possible.

He added that analysing viruses in bats is extremely important. The flying mammals can be considered virus banks, and many of the virus versions in their bodies have zoonotic abilities. Mr Kemenesi added that the expansion of human settlements is destroying the buffer zone between wild animals (and their viruses) and people. If we cannot baulk that trend, diseases transmitted from animals to humans will increase, possibly resulting in global pandemics.