scholarly journals Surface-aerosol stability and pathogenicity of diverse MERS-CoV strains from 2012 - 2018

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Neeltje van Doremalen ◽  
Michael Letko ◽  
Robert J. Fischer ◽  
Trenton Bushmaker ◽  
Claude Kwe Yinda ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Middle East ◽  
Natural Variation ◽  
Small Animal ◽  
Respiratory Illness ◽  
Environmental Stability ◽  
Small Animal Model ◽  
Surface Stability ◽  
Viral Surveillance ◽  
Severe Respiratory Illness ◽  
Reduced Surface

AbstractMiddle East Respiratory Syndrome coronavirus (MERS-CoV) is a coronavirus that infects both humans and dromedary camels and is responsible for an ongoing outbreak of severe respiratory illness in humans in the Middle East. While some mutations found in camel-derived MERS-CoV strains have been characterized, the majority of natural variation found across MERS-CoV isolates remains unstudied. Here we report on the environmental stability, replication kinetics and pathogenicity of several diverse isolates of MERS-CoV as well as SARS-CoV-2 to serve as a basis of comparison with other stability studies. While most of the MERS-CoV isolates exhibited similar stability and pathogenicity in our experiments, the camel derived isolate, C/KSA/13, exhibited reduced surface stability while another camel isolate, C/BF/15, had reduced pathogenicity in a small animal model. These results suggest that while betacoronaviruses may have similar environmental stability profiles, individual variation can influence this phenotype, underscoring the importance of continual, global viral surveillance.

scholarly journals Establishment of well-differentiated camelid airway cultures to study Middle East respiratory syndrome coronavirus

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mitra Gultom ◽  
Annika Kratzel ◽  
Jasmine Portmann ◽  
Hanspeter Stalder ◽  
Astrid Chanfon Baetzner ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Middle East ◽  
Airway Epithelial Cell ◽  
Respiratory Illness ◽  
Middle East Respiratory Syndrome ◽  
Cell Tropism ◽  
Airway Epithelial ◽  
Detailed Characterization ◽  
Well Differentiated ◽  
Severe Respiratory Illness

In 2012, Middle East respiratory syndrome coronavirus (MERS-CoV) emerged in Saudi Arabia and was mostly associated with severe respiratory illness in humans. Dromedary camels are the zoonotic reservoir for MERS-CoV. To investigate the biology of MERS-CoV in camelids, we developed a well-differentiated airway epithelial cell (AEC) culture model for Llama glama and Camelus bactrianus. Histological characterization revealed progressive epithelial cellular differentiation with well-resemblance to autologous ex vivo tissues. We demonstrate that MERS-CoV displays a divergent cell tropism and replication kinetics profile in both AEC models. Furthermore, we observed that in the camelid AEC models MERS-CoV replication can be inhibited by both type I and III interferons (IFNs). In conclusion, we successfully established camelid AEC cultures that recapitulate the in vivo airway epithelium and reflect MERS-CoV infection in vivo. In combination with human AEC cultures, this system allows detailed characterization of the molecular basis of MERS-CoV cross-species transmission in respiratory epithelium. 

scholarly journals Severe respiratory illness caused by a novel coronavirus, in a patient transferred to the United Kingdom from the Middle East, September 2012

2012 ◽  
Vol 17 (40) ◽  
Author(s):  
A Bermingham ◽  
M A Chand ◽  
C S Brown ◽  
E Aarons ◽  
C Tong ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
United Kingdom ◽  
Middle East ◽  
Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome ◽  
Human Disease ◽  
Respiratory Illness ◽  
Gulf Region ◽  
The United Kingdom ◽  
Coronavirus Infection ◽  
Novel Coronavirus ◽  
Severe Respiratory Illness

Coronaviruses have the potential to cause severe transmissible human disease, as demonstrated by the severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS) outbreak of 2003. We describe here the clinical and virological features of a novel coronavirus infection causing severe respiratory illness in a patient transferred to London, United Kingdom, from the Gulf region of the Middle East.

scholarly journals MERS-CoV: Understanding the Latest Human Coronavirus Threat

2017 ◽  
Author(s):  
Aasiyah Chafekar ◽  
Burtram C. Fielding
Keyword(s):  
Middle East ◽  
Vaccine Development ◽  
Genome Structure ◽  
Respiratory Illness ◽  
Human Coronavirus ◽  
East Europe ◽  
Human Coronaviruses ◽  
Tract Infections ◽  
Severe Respiratory Illness ◽  
Diagnosis Of Infection

Human coronaviruses cause both upper and lower respiratory tract infections in humans. In 2012 a sixth human coronavirus (hCoV) was isolated from a patient presenting with severe respiratory illness. The 60-year-old man died as a result of renal and respiratory failure after admission to a hospital in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia. The aetiological agent was eventually identified as a coronavirus and designated Middle East respiratory syndrome coronavirus (MERS-CoV). MERS-CoV has now been reported in more than 27 countries across the Middle East, Europe, North Africa and Asia. As of July 2017, 2040 MERS-CoV laboratory confirmed cases, resulting in 712 deaths, were reported globally, with a majority of these cases from the Arabian Peninsula. This review summarises the current understanding of MERS-CoV, with special reference to the (i) genome structure, (ii) clinical features, (iii) diagnosis of infection and (iv) treatment and vaccine development.

scholarly journals MERS-CoV: Understanding the Latest Human Coronavirus Threat

2018 ◽  
Author(s):  
Aasiyah Chafekar ◽  
Burtram C. Fielding
Keyword(s):  
Middle East ◽  
Vaccine Development ◽  
Genome Structure ◽  
Respiratory Illness ◽  
Human Coronavirus ◽  
East Europe ◽  
Human Coronaviruses ◽  
Tract Infections ◽  
Severe Respiratory Illness ◽  
Diagnosis Of Infection

Human coronaviruses cause both upper and lower respiratory tract infections in humans. In 2012 a sixth human coronavirus (hCoV) was isolated from a patient presenting with severe respiratory illness. The 60-year-old man died as a result of renal and respiratory failure after admission to a hospital in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia. The aetiological agent was eventually identified as a coronavirus and designated Middle East respiratory syndrome coronavirus (MERS-CoV). MERS-CoV has now been reported in more than 27 countries across the Middle East, Europe, North Africa and Asia. As of July 2017, 2040 MERS-CoV laboratory confirmed cases, resulting in 712 deaths, were reported globally, with a majority of these cases from the Arabian Peninsula. This review summarises the current understanding of MERS-CoV, with special reference to the (i) genome structure, (ii) clinical features, (iii) diagnosis of infection and (iv) treatment and vaccine development.

scholarly journals Infectious MERS-CoV Isolated From a Mildly Ill Patient, Saudi Arabia

2018 ◽  
Vol 5 (6) ◽  
Author(s):  
Hail M Al-Abdely ◽  
Claire M Midgley ◽  
Abdulrahim M Alkhamis ◽  
Glen R Abedi ◽  
Azaibi Tamin ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Saudi Arabia ◽  
Middle East ◽  
Respiratory Tract ◽  
Respiratory Illness ◽  
Upper Respiratory Tract ◽  
Illness Onset ◽  
Clinical Presentations ◽  
Wide Range ◽  
Upper Respiratory ◽  
Severe Respiratory Illness

Abstract Middle East respiratory syndrome coronavirus (MERS-CoV) is associated with a wide range of clinical presentations, from asymptomatic or mildly ill to severe respiratory illness including death. We describe isolation of infectious MERS-CoV from the upper respiratory tract of a mildly ill 27-year-old female in Saudi Arabia 15 days after illness onset.

scholarly journals Mucosal Challenge Ferret Models of Ebola Virus Disease

Pathogens ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 10 (3) ◽  
pp. 292
Author(s):  
Trevor Brasel ◽  
Jason E. Comer ◽  
Shane Massey ◽  
Jeanon Smith ◽  
Jennifer Smith ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Disease Progression ◽  
Intranasal Administration ◽  
Ebola Virus ◽  
Advanced Disease ◽  
Virus Disease ◽  
Small Animal ◽  
Clinical Pathology ◽  
Small Animal Model ◽  
Post Challenge ◽  
Mustela Putorius

Recent studies have shown the domestic ferret (Mustela putorius furo) to be a promising small animal model for the study of Ebola virus (EBOV) disease and medical countermeasure evaluation. To date, most studies have focused on traditional challenge routes, predominantly intramuscular and intranasal administration. Here, we present results from a non-clinical pathogenicity study examining oronasal, oral, and ocular mucosal challenge routes in ferrets. Animals were challenged with 1, 10, or 100 plaque forming units EBOV followed by monitoring of disease progression and biosampling. Ferrets administered virus via oronasal and oral routes met euthanasia criteria due to advanced disease 5–10 days post-challenge. Conversely, all ferrets dosed via the ocular route survived until the scheduled study termination 28-day post-challenge. In animals that succumbed to disease, a dose/route response was not observed; increases in disease severity, febrile responses, serum and tissue viral load, alterations in clinical pathology, and gross/histopathology findings were similar between subjects. Disease progression in ferrets challenged via ocular administration was unremarkable throughout the study period. Results from this study further support the ferret as a model for EBOV disease following oral and nasal mucosa exposure.

scholarly journals Updated and Validated Pan-Coronavirus PCR Assay to Detect All Coronavirus Genera

Viruses ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (4) ◽  
pp. 599
Author(s):  
Myndi G. Holbrook ◽  
Simon J. Anthony ◽  
Isamara Navarrete-Macias ◽  
Theo Bestebroer ◽  
Vincent J. Munster ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Host Species ◽  
High Sensitivity ◽  
Respiratory Illness ◽  
Reservoir Host ◽  
Pcr Assay ◽  
Wildlife Reservoirs ◽  
Viral Surveillance ◽  
Reservoir Hosts

Coronavirus (CoV) spillover events from wildlife reservoirs can result in mild to severe human respiratory illness. These spillover events underlie the importance of detecting known and novel CoVs circulating in reservoir host species and determining CoV prevalence and distribution, allowing improved prediction of spillover events or where a human–reservoir interface should be closely monitored. To increase the likelihood of detecting all circulating genera and strains, we have modified primers published by Watanabe et al. in 2010 to generate a semi-nested pan-CoV PCR assay. Representatives from the four coronavirus genera (α-CoVs, β-CoVs, γ-CoVs and δ-CoVs) were tested and all of the in-house CoVs were detected using this assay. After comparing both assays, we found that the updated assay reliably detected viruses in all genera of CoVs with high sensitivity, whereas the sensitivity of the original assay was lower. Our updated PCR assay is an important tool to detect, monitor and track CoVs to enhance viral surveillance in reservoir hosts.

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