Wuhan South China seafood wholesale market. (Photo: takefoto.cn)

Forty-four people were infected with viral pneumonia as of 8 am on Friday in Wuhan, capital of central China's Hubei Province. Eleven are still in serious condition.

The Wuhan Municipal Health Commission said Friday that all the patients are being treated in quarantine. One-hundred-twenty-one close contacts of the infected have been traced and placed under medical observation. Authorities are still tracking down other people who came into close contact with the infected.

The commission said all cases were found to be related to a seafood market, and there were no clear signs of human-to-human transmission. No medical staff has reported infections. The seafood wholesale market was shut down Wednesday. Authorities are investigating the market's hygiene conditions.

The tests on the exact pathogens and the search for the cause of the infections are still underway, the statement said.

(Compiled by Wang Xiangyu)