September 2026
A new project that aims to develop the world’s first inhaled antibody treatment for Nipah virus infection has officially launched on September 01, 2026.
Over the next 6 years, the Horizon-funded initiative, HENIPROTECT, brings together 18 partners across eight countries to tackle one of the most concerning emerging infectious disease threats.
What is Nipah virus?
Nipah virus is highly pathogenic virus hosted by fruit bats, which can carry the virus without becoming sick. These bats are widespread across parts of South-East Asia and Australia. While the virus usually spreads from animals to humans, it can also spread among people, raising concerns about pandemic preparedness.
Outbreaks tend to happen in rural or agricultural areas, causing symptoms including fever, headache, muscle ache, cough and difficulty breathing. It can be severe and lead to death in up to 75% of people who catch it.
The World Health Organization (WHO) has classified Nipah virus as a ‘priority infectious disease’ and included it in its Blueprint list, because of its potential to cause major epidemics and pandemics. There are currently no licensed prophylaxis and treatments available but the HENIPROTECT project aims to change this.
What are the aims of HENIPROTECT?
Supporting the European Union’s priorities to strengthen health security and prepare for potential future pandemics, HENIPROTECT aims to develop a new antibody cocktail treatment for the Nipah virus delivered by inhalation.
Antibodies are proteins the body produces naturally to counteract viral infections. Antibodies are also used as prophylactic and therapeutic treatments providing ready-made protection against viruses.
HENIPROTECT focuses on a cocktail of antibodies, able to neutralize Nipah virus. The project will assess their developability, suitability for human use, pharmacological activity and safety. The treatment will be administered by inhalation, which will deliver the medicine directly to the nasal cavity and the lungs to protect from dissemination to the body and transmission to healthy individuals.
Alongside early-stage clinical trials in healthy volunteers, the project will establish high-standard manufacturing (Good Manufacturing Practice), develop a toolkit to help counter future virus variants and develop new manufacturing strategy to facilitate global access in case of pandemics.
Overall, the project will not only deliver a crucial treatment for Nipah virus, but also establish a valuable blueprint for responding rapidly to future respiratory viral threats, in particular to other viruses of the same Henipavirus genus, like highly pathogenic Hendra virus.
Financial statement
Funded by the European Union. Views and opinions expressed are however those of the author(s) only and do not necessarily reflect those of the European Union or the European Commission. Neither the European Union nor the granting authority can be held responsible for them
