Coronavirus Q&A
Zoonoses are harmful microorganisms that can be passed from humans to animals and vice versa. With the current coronavirus outbreak in Wuhan, China which has now spread to a number of countries there is great interest right in what coronaviruses are and how they transferred from wildlife to humans. Here is some background information:
What is a coronavirus?
Coronaviruses are a family of zoonotic viruses with human and multiple animal hosts(1). This include migratory wild birds (1). Bats are believed to be host of severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS-CoV) viruses (2,3,4) and the virus can pass through intermediary hosts such as horses, pigs, civets and primates (3,5).
What illness do coronaviruses cause in humans?
Coronaviruses cause upper respiratory infections in humans and is thought to be passed from person to person via aerosols i.e. in breath (2). That is why respiratory masks are believed to be an effective form of protection from the disease.
What human illnesses have been caused by coronaviruses in the past?
In 2003, a novel coronavirus emerged in the Guangdong Province of China and the severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS‐CoV) outbreak it caused spread rapidly (especially via air travel) to 25 countries with thousands sickened and 774 deaths (4,6). In 2012 A novel strain of coronavirus was identified as causing an acute respiratory outbreak in several Middle eastern countries (2) and was named Middle Eastern respiratory syndrome (MERS‐CoV) with 850 deaths (4). In 2015, there was a further outbreak in South Korea where the majority of cases were hospital acquired (2).
How can I keep up to date?
Th WHO has produced a live dashboard - do check it out.
Sources:
(1) Hepojoki, S., Lindh, E., Vapalahti, O., and Huovilainen, A. (2017). Prevalence and genetic diversity of coronaviruses in wild birds, Finland. Infection ecology and epidemiology, 7(1), 1408360.
(2) Adhikari, U., Chabrelie, A., Weir, M., Boehnke, K., McKenzie, E., Ikner, L., ... & Rose, J. (2019). A Case Study Evaluating the Risk of Infection from Middle Eastern Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus (MERS‐CoV) in a Hospital Setting Through Bioaerosols. Risk Analysis, 39(12), 2608-2624. https://doi.org/10.1111/risa.13389
(3) Han, H. J., Wen, H. L., Zhou, C. M., Chen, F. F., Luo, L. M., Liu, J. W., and Yu, X. J. (2015). Bats as reservoirs of severe emerging infectious diseases. Virus research, 205, 1-6. http://doi.org/10.1016/j.virusres.2015.05.006
(4) Chen, Y. N., Hsu, H. C., Wang, S. W., Lien, H. C., Lu, H. T., & Peng, S. K. (2019). Entry of Scotophilus Bat Coronavirus-512 and Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus in Human and Multiple Animal Cells. Pathogens, 8(4), 259.
(5) Wang, L., Su, S., Bi, Y., Wong, G., & Gao, G. F. (2018). Bat-origin coronaviruses expand their host range to pigs. Trends in microbiology, 26(6), 466-470. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tim.2018.03.001
(6) Hilgenfeld, R., and Peiris, M. (2013). From SARS to MERS: 10 years of research on highly pathogenic human coronaviruses. Antiviral Research, 100( 1), 286– 295. http://doi.org/10.1016/j.antiviral.2013.08.015
What is a coronavirus?
Coronaviruses are a family of zoonotic viruses with human and multiple animal hosts(1). This include migratory wild birds (1). Bats are believed to be host of severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS-CoV) viruses (2,3,4) and the virus can pass through intermediary hosts such as horses, pigs, civets and primates (3,5).
What illness do coronaviruses cause in humans?
Coronaviruses cause upper respiratory infections in humans and is thought to be passed from person to person via aerosols i.e. in breath (2). That is why respiratory masks are believed to be an effective form of protection from the disease.
What human illnesses have been caused by coronaviruses in the past?
In 2003, a novel coronavirus emerged in the Guangdong Province of China and the severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS‐CoV) outbreak it caused spread rapidly (especially via air travel) to 25 countries with thousands sickened and 774 deaths (4,6). In 2012 A novel strain of coronavirus was identified as causing an acute respiratory outbreak in several Middle eastern countries (2) and was named Middle Eastern respiratory syndrome (MERS‐CoV) with 850 deaths (4). In 2015, there was a further outbreak in South Korea where the majority of cases were hospital acquired (2).
How can I keep up to date?
Th WHO has produced a live dashboard - do check it out.
Sources:
(1) Hepojoki, S., Lindh, E., Vapalahti, O., and Huovilainen, A. (2017). Prevalence and genetic diversity of coronaviruses in wild birds, Finland. Infection ecology and epidemiology, 7(1), 1408360.
(2) Adhikari, U., Chabrelie, A., Weir, M., Boehnke, K., McKenzie, E., Ikner, L., ... & Rose, J. (2019). A Case Study Evaluating the Risk of Infection from Middle Eastern Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus (MERS‐CoV) in a Hospital Setting Through Bioaerosols. Risk Analysis, 39(12), 2608-2624. https://doi.org/10.1111/risa.13389
(3) Han, H. J., Wen, H. L., Zhou, C. M., Chen, F. F., Luo, L. M., Liu, J. W., and Yu, X. J. (2015). Bats as reservoirs of severe emerging infectious diseases. Virus research, 205, 1-6. http://doi.org/10.1016/j.virusres.2015.05.006
(4) Chen, Y. N., Hsu, H. C., Wang, S. W., Lien, H. C., Lu, H. T., & Peng, S. K. (2019). Entry of Scotophilus Bat Coronavirus-512 and Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus in Human and Multiple Animal Cells. Pathogens, 8(4), 259.
(5) Wang, L., Su, S., Bi, Y., Wong, G., & Gao, G. F. (2018). Bat-origin coronaviruses expand their host range to pigs. Trends in microbiology, 26(6), 466-470. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tim.2018.03.001
(6) Hilgenfeld, R., and Peiris, M. (2013). From SARS to MERS: 10 years of research on highly pathogenic human coronaviruses. Antiviral Research, 100( 1), 286– 295. http://doi.org/10.1016/j.antiviral.2013.08.015
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