A little-known family of viruses already endemic to wild African primates and causing deadly symptoms may be infecting humans, according to new research from scientists at the University of Colorado. The scientists’ work was published in the journal Cell.
For 15 years, the research team has used laboratory methods and tissue samples from wild animals from around the world to figure out which viruses might be prone to transmitting to humans.
In recent years, scientists have focused on arteriviruses, which are common in pigs and horses, as well as non-human primates. They focused in particular on the simian hemorrhagic fever virus (SHFV), which causes a deadly disease similar to that caused by the Ebola virus and has led to fatal outbreaks in captive macaque colonies since the 1960s.
The study showed that the CD163 receptor allows the virus to enter cells. Through a series of laboratory experiments, the scientists found that the virus also clings surprisingly well to CD163 in human cells, getting inside and quickly making copies of itself.
Like HIV and its predecessor, simian immunodeficiency virus (SIV), simian arteriviruses also appear to attack immune cells, knocking out key defense mechanisms and persisting in the body for a long time.
The authors emphasize that a new pandemic is not inevitable, and scientists should pay more attention to the study of animal viruses in order to be able to counter them if they pass to humans.
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