Rumors in the U.S. : Contagious hantavirus strain may stay in human sperm for six years — and turn into an STI
As health officials continue to monitor the rare and deadly Andes strain of hantavirus that spread across the MV Hondius cruise ship, a disturbing truth about the disease’s long-term transmissibility has emerged. A peer-reviewed study found that hantavirus can survive in human semen for up to six years and can be sexually transmitted even after a patient has fully recovered.
The virus was completely gone from the man’s blood, urine and or respiratory tract. But it was still lurking in his semen.
They concluded that it might still be transmittable to others for up to 71 months after infection.
The team found that while there were no traces of the virus in the man’s blood, urine or respiratory tract, hantavirus was detectable in his semen and potentially transmittable to others for up to 71 months — or five years and 11 months — after infection.
Because sperm is required to procreate, the body’s immune system won’t attack them. That means that some viruses — including hantavirus, Ebola and Zika — can stealthily remain in the male testes, even as the body fights them off elsewhere.
Researchers call the testes a “safe harbor” for at least 27 infectious diseases, allowing pathogens to persist in the body and infect others years after an infected patient has recovered.
Whether a virus stays in the testes comes down to a few factors, including viral load (how much of the virus was in the bloodstream to start with) and the virus’s ability to replicate within the male reproductive tract.
And it means that a man could possibly pass the virus on to a sexual partner.
From accusations that pharmaceutical companies secretly created the virus for vaccine profits, to bizarre claims linking the word “hantavirus” to Hebrew, social media platforms have been flooded with misinformation in recent weeks.
The recent outbreak was linked to the MV Hondius cruise ship, which traveled from Argentina before docking in Tenerife in the Canary Islands. Eleven passengers reportedly became sick, with at least nine confirmed infections. Three people died, including a Dutch couple believed to have first been exposed while traveling in South America.
Hantavirus is usually transmitted through contact with rodent urine, saliva, or droppings. In some rare cases, human-to-human transmission may occur depending on the strain.
One major false claim circulating online says ivermectin can cure hantavirus. The antiparasitic drug was also falsely promoted during the COVID era.
Among those amplifying the claim online was Marjorie Taylor Greene, a controversial Trump ally known for spreading conspiracy theories.
