Henipaviruses: an expanding global public health concern?

QUARLERI, JORGE; GALVAN, VERÓNICA; DELPINO, M. VICTORIA

GeroScience

Springer Nature

Año: 2022

2509-2715

Abstract Nipah virus (NiV) and Hendra virus(HeV) are highly pathogenic zoonotic viruses of thegenus Henipavirus, family Paramyxoviridae thatcause severe disease outbreaks in humans and alsocan infect and cause lethal disease across a broadrange of mammalian species. Another related Henipavirus has been very recently identifed in China in febrile patients with pneumonia, the Langya virus(LayV) of probable animal origin in shrews. NiVand HeV were frst identifed as the causative agentsof severe respiratory and encephalitic disease in the1990s across Australia and Southern Asia with mortality rates reaching up to 90%. They are responsiblefor rare and sporadic outbreaks with no approvedtreatment modalities. NiV and HeV have wide cellular tropism that contributes to their high pathogenicity. From their natural hosts bats, diferent scenarios propitiate their spillover to pigs, horses, andhumans. Henipavirus-associated respiratory diseasearises from vasculitis and respiratory epithelial cellinfection while the neuropathogenesis of Henipavirus infection is still not completely understood butappears to arise from dual mechanisms of vasculardisease and direct parenchymal brain infection. Thisbrief review ofers an overview of direct and indirectmechanisms of HeV and NiV pathogenicity and theirinteraction with the human immune system, as wellas the main viral strategies to subvert such responses.