Bas-Congo virus
Bas-Congo virus is a poorly characterized rhabdovirus discovered in the blood of a patient who survived a severe illness resembling hemorrhagic fever. The virus was named after the former Democratic Republic of Congo province of Bas-Congo. BASV was discovered using next-generation sequencing and attempts to isolate the virus were not successful. BASV RNA has only been detected in one individual and its role as a human pathogen has not been established.
Discovery
In the spring of 2009, two teenagers living in Mangala, a small village located in the westernmost province of the Democratic Republic of Congo, developed a severe illness with symptoms that included: fever, headache, abdominal pain, mouth and nasal bleeding, hematemesis, and bloody diarrhea. Both of the teenagers died within days of developing symptoms.More than a week later, a 32-year-old nurse who cared for the two teenagers, fell ill. His symptoms were similar to the two teenagers: nasal, ocular, and oral bleeding; hematemesis and bloody diarrhea. He was provided supportive care and recovered. A blood sample was collected and subjected to next-generation sequencing. Analysis revealed the presence of a novel rhabdovirus, BASV, that was similar to other members of the poorly characterized Tibrovirus genus.
Disease association
BASV was present in the blood of the infected individual at more than 1 million RNA copies/mL of plasma, suggesting an active infection.Although next-generation sequencing is a powerful tool for detecting novel viruses, it does not unambiguously establish BASV as the cause of the patient's illness. Indeed, other experts have suggested that BASV is not the cause of the patient's illness and noted that an outbreak of Shigella was occurring in the area at the same time.