Journal article
Unresolved questions in the zoonotic transmission of MERS
Current opinion in virology, Vol.52, pp.258-264
02/2022
DOI: 10.1016/j.coviro.2021.12.013
PMCID: PMC8734234
PMID: 34999369
Abstract
The Middle East Respiratory Syndrome-coronavirus (MERS-CoV) is the second of three zoonotic coronaviruses to infect humans since 2002, causing severe pneumonia. Unlike SARS-CoV-1 and SARS-CoV-2, the causes of the severe acute respiratory syndrome and Covid-19, respectively, MERS-CoV is enzootic in dromedary camels, a domestic/companion animal present across Africa, the Middle East and Central or South Asia and is sporadically transmitted to humans. However, it does not transmit readily from human to human except in hospital and household settings. Human MERS disease is reported only from the Arabian Peninsula (and only since 2012 even though the virus was detected in camels from at least the early 1990’s) and in travelers from this region. Remarkably, no zoonotic MERS disease has been detected in Africa or Asia, even in areas of high density of MERS-CoV infected dromedaries. Here, we review aspects of MERS biology and epidemiology that might contribute to this lack of correlation between sites of camel infection and human zoonotic disease. Since MERS-CoV or MERS-like CoV have pandemic potential, further investigations into this disparity is critical, to forestall pandemics caused by this virus.
Details
- Title: Subtitle
- Unresolved questions in the zoonotic transmission of MERS
- Creators
- Malik Peiris - HKU-Pasteur Research Pole, The University of Hong Kong, Pokfulam, Hong Kong Special Administrative Region, P.R. ChinaStanley Perlman - Department of Microbiology and Immunology, University of Iowa, Iowa City, IA 52242, United States
- Resource Type
- Journal article
- Publication Details
- Current opinion in virology, Vol.52, pp.258-264
- Publisher
- Elsevier B.V
- DOI
- 10.1016/j.coviro.2021.12.013
- PMID
- 34999369
- PMCID
- PMC8734234
- ISSN
- 1879-6257
- eISSN
- 1879-6265
- Grant note
- DOI: 10.13039/501100005847, name: Health and Medical Research Fund, award: 19181032; DOI: 10.13039/100000002, name: National Institutes of Health, award: AI060699, AI129269, AI151810
- Language
- English
- Date published
- 02/2022
- Academic Unit
- Microbiology and Immunology; Stead Family Department of Pediatrics; Iowa Neuroscience Institute; Infectious Disease (Pediatrics)
- Record Identifier
- 9984209490202771
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