Practically overnight, the coronavirus has become the largest communal threat in the world. While scientists are scurrying to gain an understanding of this novel virus, there is great uncertainty about our future as we bide our time in lockdown. Will the world and life as we knew it ever be the same again? There is a lot of misinformation out there, so we thought a brief refresher might be helpful.
Coronaviruses constitute a large family of viruses that may cause illness in both animals and people. Not all coronaviruses can be transferred between animals and people, but those that can are called zoonotic viruses. The symptoms associated with these viruses are mostly respiratory in nature and may range from mild cold and flu symptoms to serious conditions. In 2003, the Serious Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS) broke out in China, with a reported death toll of 700 people, and seems to have been transmitted from civet cats to people. In 2012, a coronavirus originating from camels spread to humans, causing the Middle-Eastern Respiratory Syndrome (MERS); more than 800 deaths were recorded.
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