New virus discovered after 15 years of tracking unusual cases

 Scientists in China have discovered a previously unknown tick-borne virus that causes flu-like symptoms, fatigue, and gastrointestinal issues, according to a study recently published in the New England Journal of Medicine.

The Asian longhorned tick nairovirus (ALTNV), which belongs to the Orthonairovirus group, was detected in 10.4% of 3,163 patients who had been bitten by ticks, following extensive testing of blood samples and viral fragments conducted by researchers at the State Key
Laboratory of Pathogen and Biosecurity in Beijing.

Since 2009, Chinese scientists have been tracking patients with unusual illnesses, including severe fever with thrombocytopenia syndrome (SFTS), which had a 30% mortality rate, according to Dr. Sharon Nachman, chief of pediatric infectious diseases at Stony Brook Children's Hospital in New York. Many cases were linked to Dabie bandavirus (DBV), a tick-borne hemorrhagic fever, but it was not the most common virus.

ALTNV is genetically distinct from DBV and also causes thrombocytopenia and evidence of liver cell injury or inflammation. Patients co-infected with ALTNV and DBV were more likely to experience respiratory and renal complications. Seven of these patients, 18.4%, died during the study.