The emergence of Nipah and Hendra virus: Pathogen dynamics across a wildlife-livestock-human continuum

Abstract

This chapter reviews recent research on the emergence of the Nipah and Hendra viruses, two lethal zoonotic paramyxoviruses that first emerged from fruit bat reservoirs in Malaysia in 1999 and Australia in 1994, respectively. Large-scale environmental changes such as deforestation, intensification of agriculture, and encroachment of human populations into wildlife habitats may have driven changes in fruit bat migration patterns, feeding behavior, and the dynamics of viral transmission to promote the emergence of these pathogens. For example, fruiting trees planted next to hog containment facilities in Malaysia provide feeding and roosting sites for fruit bats that harbor the Nipah virus. These sites provide opportunities for pathogen spillover from bats to pigs, and ultimately to humans. The link between fruiting trees at hog farms and Nipah emergence has led to livestock management plans that specify buffer zones at pig farms where fruit trees are excluded.