Researchers discover approach to kill chikungunya virus

SINGAPORE: Researchers from the NUS Yong Loo Lin School of Medicine have identified a method that can kill the chikungunya virus within three days.

Currently, there are no specific drugs to cure a person infected with the virus.

Treatment is directed primarily at relieving the symptoms such as fever and severe joint pains.

But the study showed that a molecular approach could help kill the virus completely through an intravenous method.

The method could also help prevent the onset of the chikungunya virus as it helps protect individuals against the virus for 15 days.

Doctors said this discovery may help protect humans from the virus.

NUS Yong Loo Lin School of Medicine’s lead principal investigator, Dr Chu Jang Hann, said: "Currently, we don’t have so many cases of chikungunya virus infection although we had a breakout in 2008—2010 — we had close to 1,000 cases."

"...for the past two years, we don’t have as many cases but I think chikungunya virus may come back and give us another ’explosive’ round of infection, in Singapore’s context," he added.

— CNA/ck