Hantavirus live updates: Risk to general public 'very, very low'

The recent cruise ship outbreak has put renewed attention on the Andes virus, a rare type of hantavirus that can spread between people and cause severe respiratory illness. But despite decades of research, there is still no approved vaccine in the U.S.

In the U.S., researchers are testing DNA hantavirus vaccines, which use genetic material to trigger an immune response. Despite showing early promise, the shots are still a long way off from FDA approval.

RELATED: Here's what to know about hantavirus vaccines after the cruise ship outbreak

There are currently no approved vaccines anywhere in the world that specifically protect against the Andes virus, but scientists are working on it.

Current and future vaccines target high-risk groups rather than the general public, according to the World Health Organization.

The Andes virus can cause a severe respiratory illness with a mortality rate of about 38% and remains the only hantavirus known to spread from person to person, with symptoms appearing anywhere from 4 to 42 days after exposure, according to the CDC.

The overall risk for hantavirus infection remains extremely low for most people, according to the CDC. Health experts stress that what's unfolding with passengers on the cruise ship is unlikely to morph into a global pandemic.

- Dr. Jennifer Miao and Dr. Megan Still

The "risk of hantavirus to the general public remains very, very low," Dr. Brian Christine, Assistant Secretary for Health at the Department of Health and Human Services, said at a news conference on Monday.

The Andes variant "does not spread easily, and it requires prolonged, close contact with someone who is already symptomatic," he assured.

Even though, he said, the department has taken the situation "very seriously from the very start."

Fifteen passengers were welcomed to the University of Nebraska Medical Center's quarantine unit Monday morning and one person who tested positive is in the biocontainment unit, according to the unit's medical director, Dr. Mike Waldman.

The quarantine unit is more like a hotel, while the biocontainment unit is patient-based care, more like a hospital, officials said.

The 15 passengers at the quarantine unit are in "good spirits," Waldman said.

"We've been doing symptom monitoring, as well as temperature checks," he said. "Everyone here is asymptomatic and ... do not have a temperature at this time. They're all resting now and we'll do further assessments later in the day, once they've had a chance to sleep."

The one person in the biocontainment unit is doing well and does not have symptoms, but is "very tired" after a "really long journey," officials said.

The 15 in the quarantine unit will have the option to stay in Nebraska at the quarantine center for the entire 42-day monitoring period, or go home to monitor symptoms, in coordination with their state and local health departments, officials said. This will be based on whether they develop symptoms, have a support structure at home to quarantine and can contact their health department, officials said.

Besides the 16 cruise ship passengers in Nebraska, two cruise ship passengers -- who are a couple -- were flown to Atlanta "for further assessment and care," officials said. At least one of the two in Atlanta had symptoms, officials said.

The two patients in Atlanta "are under medical evaluation" at Emory University's Serious Communicable Diseases Unit, officials said, noting that their transfer there was "contingency planning."

"That means, if we're on it, since there was symptoms involved, they want to make sure that if they turn out to actually have the hantavirus, that it makes sure that the biocontainment unit here that provides medical care doesn't take up too much space, in case it's needed by the other passengers who are currently here in the more residential section," officials said.

The Georgia Department of Public Health said, "There is no risk to the public at this time. ... DPH is also remaining actively in communication with the CDC and other partners and will continue to do so for as long as necessary as we monitor each development in the coming days and weeks."

Initial genetic analyses confirmed that the hantavirus on the Hondius cruise ship is of the "known Andes variant and rule out any relevant mutations," Spanish Health Minister Monica Garcia said in a post on social media.