UPDATE - Tanzania denies suspected Marburg virus after WHO raises suspicions

UPDATES WITH STATEMENT FROM TANZANIA

UPDATES WITH DENIAL FROM TANZANIA; REVISES HEADLINE, DECK, LEDE, EDITS THROUGHOUT

By Ilayda Cakirtekin and Lulu Angelo Sanga

ISTANBUL/KAGERA, Tanzania (AA) - Tanzania has denied a World Health Organization (WHO) report of a suspected new outbreak of the Marburg virus in the East African nation.

Earlier this week, the WHO said it received reports of nine suspected cases and eight deaths in the northwestern Kagera region on Jan. 10.

Samples from two patients have been collected and being tested for confirmation of the outbreak, the WHO said, adding that contacts, including health care workers, have been identified and under follow-up.

The Tanzanian Health Ministry said that a team of health experts was deployed to investigate, collect samples, and conduct laboratory tests.

"All tests from sampled individuals have returned negative for the Marburg virus," the ministry added.

Marburg virus disease is in the same family as the virus that causes Ebola, a highly virulent disease that causes hemorrhagic fever. The virus is transmitted to people from fruit bats and spreads among humans through direct contact with the bodily fluids of infected people, surfaces and materials.

The cases came after an outbreak in Rwanda, which shares a border with Tanzania's Kagera region.

At least 15 people were killed and 66 people were infected in Rwanda.