Nipah virus: a summary for clinicians

Abstract Objectives This article is one of a series on acute, severe diseases of humans caused by emerging viruses for which there are limited or no licensed medical countermeasures. Nipah virus (NiV) is recognized as a pathogen of concern by health experts and is included on the WHO list of emergin...

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Main Authors: Corri B. Levine, Lauren M. Sauer, Susan L. F. McLellan, Jared D. Evans, On behalf of the State of the Science Working Group of the National Ebola Training and Education Center’s (NETEC’s) Special Pathogens Research Network (SPRN)
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: BMC 2025-07-01
Series:International Journal of Emergency Medicine
Online Access:https://doi.org/10.1186/s12245-025-00916-1
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author Corri B. Levine
Lauren M. Sauer
Susan L. F. McLellan
Jared D. Evans
On behalf of the State of the Science Working Group of the National Ebola Training and Education Center’s (NETEC’s) Special Pathogens Research Network (SPRN)
author_facet Corri B. Levine
Lauren M. Sauer
Susan L. F. McLellan
Jared D. Evans
On behalf of the State of the Science Working Group of the National Ebola Training and Education Center’s (NETEC’s) Special Pathogens Research Network (SPRN)
author_sort Corri B. Levine
collection DOAJ
description Abstract Objectives This article is one of a series on acute, severe diseases of humans caused by emerging viruses for which there are limited or no licensed medical countermeasures. Nipah virus (NiV) is recognized as a pathogen of concern by health experts and is included on the WHO list of emerging pathogens with pandemic concern. However, NiV is a relatively poorly understood pathogen, due to the small number of outbreaks and human clinical studies. The primary objective of this summary on NiV is to provide a global understanding of clinical perspectives, providing overviews of pathogenesis, clinical features, and diagnostics while emphasizing medical countermeasures. The focus is on potential therapies and vaccines that have demonstrated potential efficacy to combat NiV infection to provide clinicians candidates for use in an emergency situation or clinical research settings. Methods A literature review was conducted for NiV vaccines and therapeutics tested in animal models of disease. Results We identified two antiviral medications approved by the U.S. FDA with potential benefit for the off-label treatment of NiV infection, and a larger number of potential candidates are currently being evaluated in early development. Multiple vaccine platforms are in pre-clinical development for NiV prevention, but data from human clinical trials are not yet available. Conclusion We provide specific background information on NiV and disease manifestations along with succinct summaries of medical countermeasures against NiV to provide clinicians a rapid reference to review the literature if faced with a patient in whom NiV infection is suspected. Moreover, the information provides several candidates for human clinical research studies in outbreak settings.
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spelling doaj-art-9dc5dbe0750c49968b1efbf42c0970002025-08-20T03:42:34ZengBMCInternational Journal of Emergency Medicine1865-13802025-07-0118111410.1186/s12245-025-00916-1Nipah virus: a summary for cliniciansCorri B. Levine0Lauren M. Sauer1Susan L. F. McLellan2Jared D. Evans3On behalf of the State of the Science Working Group of the National Ebola Training and Education Center’s (NETEC’s) Special Pathogens Research Network (SPRN)University of Texas Medical BranchUniversity of Nebraska Medical CenterUniversity of Texas Medical BranchUniversity of Nebraska Medical CenterAbstract Objectives This article is one of a series on acute, severe diseases of humans caused by emerging viruses for which there are limited or no licensed medical countermeasures. Nipah virus (NiV) is recognized as a pathogen of concern by health experts and is included on the WHO list of emerging pathogens with pandemic concern. However, NiV is a relatively poorly understood pathogen, due to the small number of outbreaks and human clinical studies. The primary objective of this summary on NiV is to provide a global understanding of clinical perspectives, providing overviews of pathogenesis, clinical features, and diagnostics while emphasizing medical countermeasures. The focus is on potential therapies and vaccines that have demonstrated potential efficacy to combat NiV infection to provide clinicians candidates for use in an emergency situation or clinical research settings. Methods A literature review was conducted for NiV vaccines and therapeutics tested in animal models of disease. Results We identified two antiviral medications approved by the U.S. FDA with potential benefit for the off-label treatment of NiV infection, and a larger number of potential candidates are currently being evaluated in early development. Multiple vaccine platforms are in pre-clinical development for NiV prevention, but data from human clinical trials are not yet available. Conclusion We provide specific background information on NiV and disease manifestations along with succinct summaries of medical countermeasures against NiV to provide clinicians a rapid reference to review the literature if faced with a patient in whom NiV infection is suspected. Moreover, the information provides several candidates for human clinical research studies in outbreak settings.https://doi.org/10.1186/s12245-025-00916-1
spellingShingle Corri B. Levine
Lauren M. Sauer
Susan L. F. McLellan
Jared D. Evans
On behalf of the State of the Science Working Group of the National Ebola Training and Education Center’s (NETEC’s) Special Pathogens Research Network (SPRN)
Nipah virus: a summary for clinicians
International Journal of Emergency Medicine
title Nipah virus: a summary for clinicians
title_full Nipah virus: a summary for clinicians
title_fullStr Nipah virus: a summary for clinicians
title_full_unstemmed Nipah virus: a summary for clinicians
title_short Nipah virus: a summary for clinicians
title_sort nipah virus a summary for clinicians
url https://doi.org/10.1186/s12245-025-00916-1
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