First Human Case of Shamonda Virus Infection Recorded in France
14:48 22 October, 2026The first documented case of a human infection with the Shamonda virus has been recorded in France, and the patient has died in hospital, the country’s Ministry of Agriculture announced on Thursday.
“Until now, it was believed that the Shamonda virus could not be transmitted to humans. The infection of this patient with the Shamonda virus is therefore the first documented case of the virus being detected in a human… The patient died in early October,” the ministry said in a statement.
The patient reportedly suffered from severe immunodeficiency. The infection is believed to have entered the body through the bite of a biting midge in eastern France, where the first cases of animal infection were recorded in spring and summer.
The authorities said that no threat to public health had been identified so far.
The Shamonda virus was first identified in Nigeria in the mid-1960s. It primarily affects cattle, causing fever in infected animals. The infection is transmitted through insect bites.