HMPV : A brief description

Once again there is news from China about the spread of a virus, HMPV. When the other countries are seeing the Flu season this year, China is seeing a bad HMPV season . Few cases have already seen in India, but the biggest fear among people now is whether this will turn into the sequel to Covid-19 and are we going to see the same disturbing scenarios like in COVID time ? So the one definite answer to all these questions is a clear "No" .

HMPV (Human Meta Pneumo Virus) though sounds scary, it is just a local respiratory virus , not a virus like Covid and it's not like it has come from outside or from China . It has been around us for decades. It is being circulated in India for many years . Often HMPV is considered as "Anonymous Virus " that means people who are infected with this doesn't even know that they have it, dismissing their symptoms as cold or flu. This HMPV has not been hidden but it has been active in every season and people have already developed a immunity against it.

Now let's dig more into this mystifying HMPV exploring it's discovery, virology, life cycle, behavioural changes, transmission and any future prediction of its outbreak.

HMPV was first discovered 24 years ago i.e in 2001 by researchers in the Netherlands, led by Dr. Bernadette van der Hoogen and her team at the Erasmus Medical Center. They were just analyzing the stored samples from children with unexplained respiratory infections . These children presented symptoms similar to those caused by RSV (Respinratory syncytial Virus) but tests for RSV and other known respiratory viruses came back negative. Then cell culture analysis, electron microscopy, genetic sequencing, serological evidences confirmed that the previously unrecognized Virus is a new human pathogen and they named it HMPV. Though HMPV and AMPV (Avian Meta Pneumo Virus) share a common ancestor till it is unproven that HMPV might have originated from a zoonotic event (transmission from animals to humans) in the distance past.

HMPV is now exclusively a human virus in its current form. It is mainly affecting the young children, elderly and individuals having compromised immune system. According to Paul Hunter, a professor at University of East Anglia in the UK , almost every child under the age of 5 has already had HMPV infection at least once and after that they often get reinfections throughout their life.

Discussing about the structure of HMPV, it is negative sense single stranded RNA virus surrounded by a lipid bilayer and its size ranges from 150-600 nm in diameter having F- protein (Fusion protein), G-protein (Attachment / Glyco Protein) and SH protein (small Hydrophobic protein) on its surface. Its lifecycle follows the typical replication process of the paramyxoviridae family. Though some behavioural changes have already been observed, the occuring mutations mainly influence how well the virus avoids that pre-existing immunity so that it will be more effective in its new Form.

The main transmission media of HMPV is respiratory droplets. Also can spread via contaminated surfaces and close contact with infected individuals causing cough, Fever, sore throat and runny nose typically 4-6 days after the exposure. In some cases sever respiratory illness like bronchitis, pneumonia are also seen.

Now the question is "Is there any Future prediction for the outbreak of HMPV ?So talking about this as the future outbreak generally depends upon the population immunity, health care access and co-circulating viruses, As long as the healthcare system is fully prepared, HMPV infection can be highly manageable. However increased global awareness, improved diagnostic tools and potential vaccines would help mitigate severe impacts of HMPV.

                             Thank you so much for reading this blog . Stay tuned with Hungry Researchers for more such captivating articles.

          MAY THE FORCE BE WITH YOU.

                                 - Bhagyashree Mohapatra