A small number of Britons have been linked to the hantavirus outbreak, public health officials have revealed.
Public Health Scotland (PHS) has said a number of people have been linked to the virus, which broke out on the Dutch cruise ship MV Hondius.
It said it was "working to follow up with a small number of individuals who had potential contact with cases" alongside the NHS.
The health body will remain in close contact with those exposed to the virus and continue precautionary testing.
There are currently no known cases of the rare strain of hantavirus in Scotland and risk to the public remains low, PHS said.
The UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) and NHS Boards in Scotland are working with the authority to "take appropriate action".
A high security lab in Glasgow has analysed 20 samples from people contacted by health authorities.
The Centre for Virus Research (CVR) is now looking into potential treatments and how the virus has spread.
A small number of people have been linked to the outbreak, which originated on the cruise ship MV Hondius
| GETTYProfessor Emma Thomson told the BBC the symptoms were "classically of respiratory illness" and were similar to a "severe influenza infection or COVID-19".
She added: "Unfortunately, the consequences of the Andes strain can be very severe, and one in three people might be expected to die.
"So that makes it a very serious infection and that's why we need ongoing research to look for new treatments and vaccines."
The small number of people have been linked to the virus just four days before a "date to watch" by health experts.
Britons were taken by bus to Arrowe Park Hospital, where 18 remain quarantined
|GETTY
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Dr Steven Quay, a US physician-scientist said third-generation cases of the hantavirus should emerge on May 19.
The CVR was also used to analyse early cases of Covid, and Ms Thomson admitted the laboratory is in a similar situation, but with lower risk.
She said: "We have learned things from the pandemic, particularly around the benefit of repurposing known drugs to treat infections.
"We now want to check if the antiviral therapies we have already are effective against this particular strain."
Passengers and crew from the MV Hondius wore personal protective equipment as they boarded planes in Tenerife
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British passengers and crew were evacuated from the MV Hondius and placed in quarantine at Arrowe Park Hospital on Merseyside for 72 hours.
Of the 22 sent to hospital, six people were able to return home or to suitable accommodation after their stay at the hospital, and are expected to continue isolating for 45 days.
It is unclear how much longer the remaining 18 Britons will have to stay at Arrowe Park Hospital, which was used to quarantine patients during the early days of the Covid pandemic.
A further 10 people, who were residing in British Overseas Territories, are being brought to Britain to be monitored.
Two British nationals who tested positive for the virus are currently being treated in the Netherlands and South Africa.
Director-General of the World Health Organisation (WHO) Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus thanked Tenerife for its "dignity" after initial fears and uncertainty around the MV Hondius's docking on the Spanish island, and has previously said there was "no sign" of a wider outbreak.
Three have died as a result of hantavirus, including a Dutch man, his wife, and a German woman.