United States: Bats that live in close proximity to humans have been found in China to harbor a variety of viruses never seen previously.
These viruses comprise two viruses strongly associated with the highly pathogenic Nipah and Hendra viruses, which have the capacity to cause serious brain inflammation and respiratory illnesses in people.
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Published June 24 in the journal PLOS Pathogens, the new work shows the value of monitoring bats and other animal species that inhabit areas around human settlements closely and that contact with them should be avoided to the best allowance.
Twenty new bat viruses have been found in China—two closely linked to deadly pathogens. But should we worry? I take a closer look at the possible symptoms and what the CDC says.
— Dr Curtis Bridges DSc & NMDs (@DRCurtisBPhD) June 29, 2025
New viruses discovered in bats in China could be the next pandemic threat.
Researchers found viruses… pic.twitter.com/rFy9MmfzM3
Bats are the natural hosts of numerous pathogens capable of causing human disease, but the extent of the bacteria, viruses, and other potential infectious organisms they may harbor has not been fully determined.
Other extensive studies have been made using the feces of bats instead of internal organs since the former is more readily collected, as livescience.com reported.
That, however, informs us only about the viruses that find their way into feces.
In a bid to examine the pathogens found in the kidneys of the bats, a team headed by Yun Feng at the Yunnan Institute of Endemic Disease Control and Prevention took samples of the kidneys of 142 bats of 10 species within the Yunnan province of China.
The genetic sequencing identified 22 viruses, 20 of which were previously unknown, a new protozoan parasite, and two types of bacteria, one of which was unknown to science.
According to the co-author of the study, Edward Holmes, a virologist at the University of Sydney in Australia, paying attention to the kidneys is significant since they offer an indication of what viruses could be shed in urine, and since urine is one of the manners through which humans could be infected by bat viruses.
“Bats peeing into date-palm collecting bowls was how Nipah virus first spread from bats to humans,” Holmes noted.
Since bats in this study inhabited orchards close to human residents, there is a threat of fruit contamination, so these pathogens might cross the boundaries into herbivores or human beings.