Study on Bats | Diseases caused by Bats | Filovirus

The government in 2020 ordered an inquiry into a study conducted in Nagaland by researchers from China, the US, and India on bats and humans carrying antibodies to deadly viruses like Ebola.

The study is investigated for how the scientists were allowed to access live samples of bats and bat hunters (humans) without due permission.

Bats are harvested in an annual ritual by a Naga Tribe in Nagaland. The study conducted research on individuals who participated in the ritual.

The Nagaland study suggests bats in South Asia act as a reservoir host of a diverse range of filoviruses, and filovirus spillover occurs through human exposure to these bats.

What do they mean by the spillover effect?

The spillover effect means the virus seems to have moved from bats to humans in one event and after this moved from one human to another.

What is Filovirus?

Filoviruses belong to a virus family called Filoviridae.

Filovirus is a filamentous RNA virus of a genus that causes severe hemorrhagic fever in humans and nonhuman primates.

3 genera of this virus family have been identified: Cuevavirus, Marburgvirus, and Ebolavirus.

Northeast India is a region with no historical record of the Ebola virus. But, this study has found the presence of filovirus (ex. ebolavirus, marburg virus) reactive antibodies in both human (ex. bat hunters) and bat populations implying zoonotic spread

What are the diseases Linked to Bats?

All bats can carry viruses. Many high-profile epidemics have been traced to bats.
Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS) antibodies were found in insectivorous bats.
Ebola antibodies were found in Hammer-headed fruit bat.
Indian Flying Fox, hosts over 50 viruses.
Rabies