Travels to, and throughout the brain: Hendra virus neuroinvasion

Authors: Dups J
Publication: Proceedings of the Australian Veterinary Association (AVA) Annual Conferences, Volume 2014 AVA Annual Conference, Perth, Issue Public Health / Equine, May 2014
Publisher: Australian Veterinary Association

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Abstract: Hendra virus is a paramyxovirus that was first identified in 1994 following an outbreak of respiratory and neurological disease in horses in the Brisbane suburb of Hendra1. During the outbreak, a horse trainer and stable hand from the property developed severe influenza like illness from which only the stable hand recovered. Samples from the trainer and stable hand identified the same virus infecting both the horses and the humans. This was the first reported zoonotic respiratory virus to travel from horses to humans. In September of 1995, more than 900km north of Brisbane in Mackay, a patient was admitted to hospital with severe encephalitis2. The patient was tested for Hendra after exhaustive screening for other causal agents returned negative results. He was positive and succumbed to infection soon after. The patient’s history revealed that he had suffered an aseptic meningitic illness 13 months prior, in August 1994, after helping post mortem two horses that had died suddenly of a respiratory and neurological illness. These were retrospectively diagnosed with Hendra virus. This introduced two new facts to the field; 1) the first cases of Hendra virus in both horses and humans occurred the month before the outbreak in Hendra and 2) following apparent recovery from neurological disease patients could relapse, or recrudesce with infection months later.

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