HMPV Has No Vaccine Even After 24 Years Of Its Discovery - Here's All You Need To Know
(MENAFN- Live Mint) HMPV : After the HMPV virus's outbreak in China, India detected five cases on Monday, January 6. Amid already existing concerns of whether this COVID-like virus can bring in another pandemic, another global concern is that despite the fact that HMPV was first discovered in 2001, a vaccine for the same has still not been developed, even after 24 years.
“There is no specific antiviral treatment or vaccine for HMPV,” states the Karnataka Directorate of Medical Education's latest advisory. The Chinese Centre for disease Control and Prevention (China CDC) also mentions that currently, there is no vaccine or medication effective against HMPV . The treatment is mostly focused on alleviating symptoms.
Dutch scholars first discovered HMPV in 2001, in nasopharyngeal aspirate samples( sample of mucus or fluid collected from the upper part of throat) of children with respiratory infections caused by unknown pathogens, states the China CDC. 24 years have passed by, and there is still no vaccine for HMPV.
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According to a study 'Human Metapneumovirus in Adults,' published by the National Library of Medicine, several 'in vitro'(controlled) and animal studies had been conducted to investigate the development of an HMPV vaccine. However, no human studies have been performed yet and no vaccine is available up till now.
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The journal further mentioned that although the results of studies performed in rodent and non-human primate models were promising, very little research has been performed in human volunteers. As a result, there is no vaccine available for HMPV.
When HMPV got severe in the US
According to the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's respiratory virus surveillance systems, HMPV cases had spiked in the US in 2023, during the Spring season. Most people who caught it probably didn't even know they had it, reported CNN.
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