Articles: coronavirus.
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Middle East Respiratory Syndrome coronavirus (MERS-CoV) emerged in 2012 has since resulted in sporadic cases, intra-familial transmission and major outbreaks in healthcare settings. The clinical picture of MERS-CoV includes asymptomatic infections, mild or moderately symptomatic cases and fatal disease. ⋯ The actual contributing factors to the spread of MERS-CoV are yet to be systematically studied, but data to date suggest viral, host and environmental factors play a major role. Here, we summarize the known factors for the diverse transmission of MERS-CoV.
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The first known cases of Middle East respiratory syndrome (MERS), associated with infection by a novel coronavirus (CoV), occurred in 2012 in Jordan but were reported retrospectively. The case first to be publicly reported was from Jeddah, in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA). Since then, MERS-CoV sequences have been found in a bat and in many dromedary camels (DC). ⋯ Sero-surveys have found widespread evidence of past infection in adult camels and limited past exposure among humans. Sensitive, validated reverse transcriptase real-time polymerase chain reaction (RT-rtPCR)-based diagnostics have been available almost from the start of the emergence of MERS. While the basic virology of MERS-CoV has advanced over the past three years, understanding of the interplay between camel, environment, and human remains limited.
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Here we designed and tested two highly specific quantitative TaqMan(®)-MGB-based reverse transcriptase quantitative polymerase chain reaction (RT-qPCR) assays for Middle East Respiratory Syndrome (MERS). The primers and probes for these assays were evaluated and found to have a limit of detection (LOD) of 0.005 plaque-forming units/PCR (pfu/PCR).
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Arch. Bronconeumol. · Nov 2015
ReviewReview of Non-Bacterial Infections in Respiratory Medicine: Viral Pneumonia.
Although bacteria are the main pathogens involved in community-acquired pneumonia, a significant number of community-acquired pneumonia are caused by viruses, either directly or as part of a co-infection. The clinical picture of these different pneumonias can be very similar, but viral infection is more common in the pediatric and geriatric populations, leukocytes are not generally elevated, fever is variable, and upper respiratory tract symptoms often occur; procalcitonin levels are not generally affected. For years, the diagnosis of viral pneumonia was based on cell culture and antigen detection, but since the introduction of polymerase chain reaction techniques in the clinical setting, identification of these pathogens has increased and new microorganisms such as human bocavirus have been discovered. ⋯ Ribavirin has been used in children with syncytial respiratory virus, and in immunosuppressed subjects. Apart from these drugs, no antiviral has been shown to be effective. Prevention with anti-influenza virus vaccination and with monoclonal antibodies, in the case of syncytial respiratory virus, may reduce the incidence of pneumonia.
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Emerging Infect. Dis. · Nov 2015
Molecular Epidemiology of Hospital Outbreak of Middle East Respiratory Syndrome, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, 2014.
We investigated an outbreak of Middle East respiratory syndrome (MERS) at King Fahad Medical City (KFMC), Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, during March 29-May 21, 2014. This outbreak involved 45 patients: 8 infected outside KFMC, 13 long-term patients at KFMC, 23 health care workers, and 1 who had an indeterminate source of infection. ⋯ This finding suggested continued health care-associated transmission for 5 months. Molecular epidemiology documented multiple external introductions in a seemingly contiguous outbreak and helped support or refute transmission pathways suspected through epidemiologic investigation.