What do we know about the new Langya virus? Do we need to be worried?

A new virus, Langya henipavirus, is suspected to have caused infections in 35 people in China’s Shandong and Henan provinces over roughly a two-year period to 2021.

It’s related to Hendra and Nipah viruses, which cause disease in humans. However, there’s much we don’t know about the new virus – known as LayV for short – including whether it spreads from human to human.

Here’s what we know so far.

How sick are people getting?

Researchers in China first detected this new virus as part of routine surveillance in people with a fever who had reported recent contact with animals. Once