Killer virus could come from fruit bats

11.44am

A leading New Zealand scientist in influenza transmission said today a killer virus infecting people in Asia could have started in fruit bats, and its spread could be due to deforestation.

Professor Roger Morris, of Massey University, said a claimed Hong Kong breakthrough on the pneumonia strain was good news, but must be confirmed.

University scientists in Hong Kong say Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (Sars), is from the paramyxo family of viruses and is not a feared influenza virus.

The paramyxo family produces mumps, measles and canine distemper.

It also includes three viruses similar to Sars that have originated in fruit bats in Asia and Australia, spread to other animals such as pigs and horses, and have been passed to humans, Prof Morris told NZPA.

The Hong Kong claim has been backed up by a finding in Germany, where particles resembling a paramyxo virus have been found in some laboratory testing on a Sars patient.

"If (the claim) is true, then that's an important development," Prof Morris said.

"Knowing that it's a paramyxo virus and not an influenza virus very greatly reduces the likelihood of a global pandemic."

Sars has now killed up to 14 people worldwide, with over 120 infected in Hong Kong, where the valuable tourism industry has taken a sharp fall.

However, there must be several more weeks of tests before the scientists' claim is confirmed.

Prof Morris, who has 40 years of research experience, said bats traditionally have not come into much contact with the animals which pass viruses on to humans.

"Due to deforestation, there's getting to be more contact between bats and people. Bats happen to be a reservoir for an amazing range of viruses, but they appear to suffer no ill effects whatsoever."

New Zealand had just two species of bats in small populations, which are not in the affected bat groups, unlike Australia and Asia, Prof Morris said.

However, even though the virus could have been isolated, he said people should not yet begin to relax.

"This has got to be an unusual virus, not one that has been circulating for a long time, because it's circulating very rapidly and has got a reasonably high fatality rate among people," he said. "It looks like we've got something that's new and different and it's still guesswork. This is a tricky area, and it is possible to get the virus wrong."

The finding "dampened down" concern because plans could now be made to manage it and quarantine should stop it from spreading.

"One of the lessons from this is to keep away from bats," Prof Morris said.

Meanwhile, four people displaying suspicious symptoms taken to Middlemore Hospital in Auckland yesterday were not suffering from Sars, a spokeswoman said today.

Australian health authorities yesterday said that none of the 20 patients being monitored in the country's hospitals fitted the profile typical of Sars.

Experts say the Hong Kong discovery probably rules out the possibility the illness is a new influenza strain like the 1918 pandemic that killed an estimated 20 million people.

- NZPA