page_title: Middle East respiratory syndrome
section_title: Virology
hierarchical_section_title: Middle East respiratory syndrome / Cause / Virology
caption_attribution_description: English: MERS-CoV particles as seen by negative stain electron microscopy. Virions contain characteristic club-like projections emanating from the viral membrane.
context_page_description: Middle East respiratory syndrome, also known as camel flu, is a viral respiratory infection caused by the MERS-coronavirus. Symptoms may range from none, to mild, to severe. Typical symptoms include fever, cough, diarrhea, and shortness of breath. The disease is typically more severe in those with other health problems.
  MERS-CoV is a coronavirus believed to be originally from bats. However, humans are typically infected from camels, either during direct contact or indirectly. Spread between humans typically requires close contact with an infected person. Its spread is uncommon outside of hospitals. Thus, its risk to the global population is currently deemed to be fairly low. Diagnosis is by rRT-PCR testing of blood and respiratory samples.
  As of 2020 there is no specific vaccine or treatment for the disease, but a number are being developed. The World Health Organization recommends that those who come in contact with camels wash their hands and not touch sick camels. They also recommend that camel-based food products be appropriately cooked. Treatments that help with the symptoms and support body functioning may be used.
context_section_description: Middle East respiratory syndrome is caused by the MERS coronavirus (MERS-CoV), a species with single-stranded RNA belonging to the genus betacoronavirus which is distinct from SARS coronavirus and the common-cold coronavirus. Its genomes are phylogenetically classified into two clades, Clades A and B. Early cases of MERS were of Clade A clusters (EMC/2012 and Jordan-N3/2012) while new cases are genetically different in general (Clade B). The virus grows readily on Vero cells and LLC-MK2 cells. In November 2012, Egyptian virologist Dr. Ali Zaki sent a virus sample from the first confirmed case in Saudi Arabia to virologist Ron Fouchier, a leading coronavirus researcher at the Erasmus Medical Center (EMC) in Rotterdam, The Netherlands. The second laboratory-proven case was in London, confirmed by the UK Health Protection Agency (HPA). The HPA named the virus the London1_novel CoV 2012.
caption: MERS coronaviruses under electron microscope.
exif: {}