{"id":12052,"date":"2026-06-03T23:31:53","date_gmt":"2026-06-03T23:31:53","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/siliconvalleymovingpost.com\/?p=12052"},"modified":"2026-06-03T23:31:53","modified_gmt":"2026-06-03T23:31:53","slug":"tools-to-fight-hantavirus-show-promise-despite-limited-funding-now-researchers-hope-to-continue","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/siliconvalleymovingpost.com\/?p=12052","title":{"rendered":"Tools to fight hantavirus show promise despite limited funding. Now researchers hope to continue"},"content":{"rendered":"

By NAYARA BATSCHKE and SUSAN MONTOYA BRYAN<\/strong><\/p>\n

SANTIAGO, Chile (AP) \u2014 When a rare but deadly rodent-borne virus struck passengers on a cruise ship and seemed to be spreading, there were no treatments for those who fell ill and no vaccines to protect others.<\/p>

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That was the case even though it wasn\u2019t a novel germ that the world had never seen before, like the virus that caused the coronavirus pandemic. It was a hantavirus, one of a family of viruses that have been known for decades and are thought to exist around the world.<\/p>\n

Teams of researchers, including in Chile, Argentina and the United States, have long been trying to find and develop drugs and vaccines. But because the viruses are relatively rare and don\u2019t spread easily between people, there hasn\u2019t been enough sustained investment by governments, global health groups, or drug companies to pay for the extensive safety and efficacy testing needed to make them available.<\/p>\n

Still, there have been some promising developments. Researchers on Wednesday published a hint that a drug used for an autoimmune disease may help hantavirus patients fight off the most deadly symptoms.<\/p>\n

They and others hope the attention that the cruise ship outbreak brought to the virus \u2014 and concern that hantavirus infections could become more common as a changing climate is expected to increase contact between people and rodents \u2014 may bring new momentum to the hunt.<\/p>\n

\u201cI hope this situation will help us continue our research and strengthen the collaboration between healthcare workers, the community, and the necessary resources,\u201d said Dr. Fernando Tortosa of the National University of R\u00edo Negro in Patagonia, Argentina, the study\u2019s lead author.<\/p>\n

Different species of hantavirus cause different symptoms<\/h4>\n

Hantaviruses usually spread when people inhale contaminated residue of rodent droppings. But there are unique species of hantavirus found in different parts of the world that have their own characteristics and can cause different symptoms.<\/p>

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The Andes virus, the germ behind the cruise ship outbreak, is a particular focus of researchers because it is the only hantavirus thought to be able to spread between people in some cases. And while hantavirus infections are rare, they can be extremely deadly.<\/p>\n

\u201cThat is why it is a public health problem,\u201d said Mar\u00eda In\u00e9s Barr\u00eda, a virologist at the Universidad San Sebasti\u00e1n in Chile who studies hantaviruses.<\/p>\n

Three of the 13 likely cases among cruise ship passengers ended in death. Separately, in Chile, the Ministry of Health has confirmed 15 deaths and 42 cases of hantavirus so far this year. Authorities in Argentina have reported 32 deaths and 102 cases since June 2025. In the U.S., 35% of the hantavirus cases since tracking began in 1993 have resulted in death, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.<\/p>\n

The search for treatments to fight the worst symptoms<\/h4>\n

In Argentina, researchers are testing whether a treatment for rheumatoid arthritis might help fight hantavirus pulmonary syndrome, a severe infection caused by both the Andes virus and the Sin Nombre virus, a type of hantavirus found in North America.<\/p>

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The drug tocilizumab tamps down a molecule called IL-6 that triggers damaging inflammation in some autoimmune and other diseases. IL-6 also is a suspect in the inflammatory reaction to the infection, which can rapidly cause lungs to fill with fluid and fail.<\/p>\n

Four of five patients in an Argentinian hospital survived after receiving tocilizumab in addition to traditional supportive care for hantavirus pulmonary syndrome, the research team reported in The Lancet Infectious Diseases.<\/p>\n

The report is unusual, tracking the first people to receive tocilizumab in an ongoing \u201ccompassionate use\u201d study \u2014 meaning doctors can use it in patients they deem eligible. Another five who were deemed eligible for tocilizumab but didn\u2019t get it and instead received only standard care died. Two worsened too quickly and the hospital lacked supply for the others, the researchers reported.<\/p>

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The research team cautioned that the five patients who didn\u2019t receive the drug were sicker and older than those who did. Still, they said tocilizumab warrants further investigation.<\/p>\n

Efforts to stop hantavirus have also shown promise<\/h4>\n