Are all coronaviruses dangerous?

The coronaviruses belong to a large family of viruses that have positive single-stranded RNA as genetic material. Coronaviruses, like rhinoviruses, are often the cause of the common cold.

They are mainly active in winter and spring. About 30 strains of the coronavirus are known, but only seven can infect humans: HCoV-229E, HCoV-OC43, SARS-CoV, HCoV-NL63, HKU1-nCoV, MERS-CoV and finally SARS-CoV-2 that we also know as the Wuhan virus. SARS stands for Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome and MERS comes from Middle East respiratory syndrome.

It is mainly SARS, MERS and SARS-CoV-2 that can cause fatal pneumonia. The other coronaviruses often cause the common cold or are not contagious to humans. At the end of 2019, an outbreak of a previously unknown variant of the coronavirus occurred in the Chinese metropolis of Wuhan. It was given the temporary name 2019-nCoV. The contamination is linked to a seafood market in Wuhan, where live animals such as otters, badgers and snakes were also illegally traded. The market was then closed.

Infection with the virus causes flu-like symptoms and leads to pneumonia in some patients. The World Health Organization (WHO) deemed the outbreak a global medical emergency due to its rapid spread and severity as of January 30, 2020.

Source: https://www.who.int/health-topics/coronavirus#tab=tab_1

Author: Prof. Dr. Dirk Devroey - Latest update: 2023-12-10 - Copyright: Clinifacts 2024