Science Rabbit Newsletter

Fatality Rate Up to 70%. No Cure. No Vaccine. Here’s Why It Matters.

I know—you’re tired of hearing about viruses. After years of living through COVID, and the endless politicization of…everything really, the idea of another viral threat might feel like fearmongering. But some viruses deserve your attention, and Nipah virus (NiV) is one of them. Hear me out.

Why? It kills up to 7 out of 10 people it infects.^1,2 It spreads from animals and humans. And if we don’t invest in prevention now, it could spark the next global crisis. Normally, this isn’t something you would have to even concern yourself about because there are brilliant, incredibly hard working people and organizations heading these things off. But, we (the US) are cutting off funding and communication with international organizations that have been successfully thwarting viruses for decades. More on that at the end.

What Is Nipah Virus?

Nipah virus is part of the Paramyxoviridae family and is naturally carried by fruit bats, specifically flying foxes. It first emerged in 1999 during an outbreak among Malaysian pig farmers. Since then, deadly outbreaks have appeared sporadically in Bangladesh and India, often with devastating consequences.¹

How Does It Spread?

Nipah is terrifying because it doesn’t just jump from animals—it can also move between people:

• Animal to Human: Eating fruit contaminated with bat saliva or urine, or direct contact with infected pigs or bats. Specifically, infected bats partially eat fruit, leaving infectious virus, a pig then becomes infected from eating the contaminated fruit. Farmers then become infected from close contact with infected pigs.¹
• Human to Human: Close contact with body fluids—saliva, blood, or droplets from coughing or sneezing.³

Why It’s So Dangerous

• Mortality Rate: Between 40–75%. That’s orders of magnitude higher than COVID-19.^1,2
• Symptoms: Starts like the flu—fever, headache, body aches—but can rapidly escalate to brain swelling, seizures, and coma.²
• No Cure. No Vaccine. All we have is supportive care.

Why It Could Spark the Next Pandemic

Nipah has all the red flags:

• ✅ High death rate
• ✅ Can spread from person to person
• ✅ No treatment or vaccine
• ✅ Zoonotic origin (just like SARS-CoV-2)

That’s why the World Health Organization (WHO) lists Nipah as a “priority pathogen”—it’s one of the viruses most likely to trigger a global emergency if ignored. The United States has recently broken up with the WHO so that may be why you have not heard about it.

How to Protect Yourself

For now, prevention and vigilance is your best defense:

• Avoid raw fruit or juice in outbreak regions unless washed and peeled.
• Stay away from bats and pigs if you’re in affected areas.
• Use protective gear and practice excellent hygiene if caring for someone who’s sick.

Final Thoughts: This Isn’t About Panic—It’s About Information

I’m not sounding the alarm to scare you, I want to inform you. Nipah virus isn’t spreading widely right now, but emerging viruses don’t wait for us to catch up. What we do before an outbreak makes all the difference.

The solution? Invest in research, support global public health partnerships like the WHO, and stay curious. Staying informed isn’t being paranoid—it’s being smart.

1. Yadav, P.D. et al. A One Health approach to understanding and managing Nipah virus outbreaks. Nat Microbiol 10, 1272–1281 (2025). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41564-025-02020-9
2. Hossain, M. J. et al. Clinical presentation of nipah virus infection in Bangladesh. Clin. Infect. Dis. 46, 977–984 (2008).
3. Hegde, S. et al. Potential for person-to-person transmission of henipaviruses: a systematic review of the literature. J. Infect. Dis.https://doi.org/10.1093/infdis/jiad467 (2023).