Henipavirus susceptibility to environmental variables

The routes of henipavirus transmission between hosts are poorly understood. The purpose of this study was to measure the persistence of henipaviruses under various environmental conditions and thereby gain an insight into likely mechanisms of transmission. Henipaviruses survived for more than 4 days at 22 °C in pH-neutral fruit bat urine but were sensitive to higher temperatures and pH changes. On mango flesh, survival time varied depending on temperature and fruit pH, ranging from 2 h to more than 2 days. Desiccation of viruses substantially reduced survival time to less than 2 h. The sensitivity of henipaviruses to pH, temperature and desiccation indicates a need for close contact between hosts for transmission to occur, although under ideal conditions henipaviruses can persist for extended periods facilitating vehicle-borne transmission.