Middle East respiratory syndrome coronavirus

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University of Oklahoma Study Abroad Microbiology in Arezzo, Italy[1]

Etiology/Bacteriology

Taxonomy

Viruses; ssRNA viruses; ssRNA positive-strand viruses, no DNA stage; Nidovirales; Coronaviridae; Coronavirinae; Betacoronavirus; unclassified Betacoronavirus

NCBI: [2] Genome: [3]

Description

Middle East respiratory syndrome coronavirus infects the respiratory system, causing the acute illness Middle East respiratory syndrome. It was first identified in Jiddah, Saudi Arabia in 2012 and soon afterward seen in other Middle Eastern countries including Jordan, Qatar, and the United Arab Emirates. In other cases, it has been observed in countries including France, Germany, Italy, the United Arab Emirates, China, Malaysia, South Korea, and the United States. All confirmed cases are linked to the Arabian Peninsula. Coronaviruses are characterized by their crown-like, coronal glycoprotein spikes on their surface. They have enveloped virions that measure approximately 120nm in diameter with a nucleocapsid made up of viral nucleic acids and are helical in shape. [1]

http://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/about/index.html

References

1 "MERS." Encyclopaedia Britannica. Britannica Academic. Encyclopædia Britannica Inc., 2015. Web. 22 Jul. 2015. <http://academic.eb.com/EBchecked/topic/1949834/MERS>

Created by Hae Cha, students of Tyrrell Conway at the University of Oklahoma.