French health authorities said that they had detected the Shamonda virus in a human for the first time in a person who later died.
According to The Independent, the patient, who was already being treated for a serious illness at a hospice in Lyon, was found to have been infected with the virus before he died in early October.
Until now, the virus, which usually affects livestock, was considered non-transmissible to humans, the agricultural department said, adding that they saw no health risk to the general population at this stage.
But initial investigations suggest that cerebral complications seen in the immunocompromised patient before his death were “very likely” linked to infection with the Shamonda virus, they noted.
What is the Shamonda virus?
Shamonda virus is an insect-borne Orthobunyavirus primarily affecting livestock, particularly cattle, and transmitted by biting midges.
First identified in Nigeria in the mid-1960s, it has since been detected sporadically in animals in Africa and Japan. It has been spreading among several European countries this year.
Despite decades of circulation in Africa and Asia, the virus only appeared in Europe this summer, and no human cases had been documented globally until now, the French department of agriculture said on Thursday.
Symptoms
Shamonda virus belongs to the same group of viruses as Schmallenberg virus (SBV) and mainly affects cattle, causing fever, diarrhoea, lethargy and reduced milk production, according to the UK’s Animal and Plant Health Agency.
The agency said abortions have also been documented in infected cattle. They also reported concerns that infection during pregnancy could result in congenital abnormalities, similar to those seen with SBV and other related viruses.
The virus was not thought to be fatal in cattle, according to the British Agriculture Bureau.
France’s health authorities reported on Thursday that the Lyon patient was already immunocompromised and being treated for a serious illness when they died in early October.
