Geographic distribution of MERS coronavirus among dromedary camels, Africa

Abstract

We found serologic evidence for the circulation of Middle East respiratory syndrome coronavirus among dromedary camels in Nigeria, Tunisia, and Ethiopia. Circulation of the virus among dromedaries across broad areas of Africa may indicate that this disease is currently underdiagnosed in humans outside the Arabian Peninsula.

Keywords: Africa; Arabian Peninsula; Coronaviridae; MERS; Middle East respiratory syndrome; beta-coronavirus; camels; coronavirus infections; disease reservoirs; pneumonia; viruses; zoonoses.

Figure 1

Countries and provinces sampled in this study: A) Nigeria, B)Tunisia, and C) Ethiopia. Black outline indicates provinces in which samples were collected. Serologic results are indicated in each province as percentage seropositive for Middle East respiratory syndrome coronavirus (total no. dromedaries tested). Maps adapted from http://d-maps.com/index.php

Figure 2

Geographic distribution of serologic evidence for Middle East respiratory syndrome coronavirus (MERS-CoV) or MERS-like CoV circulation in dromedaries in Africa and the Arabian Peninsula. Gray shading indicates countries with seropositive dromedaries; solid black outline indicates countries with primary human cases; dotted outline indicates countries with secondary human cases. For each country with affected dromedaries, the year of sampling, % seropositive, total number tested, and age group are indicated. A, adult, >2 years of age; J, juvenile, ≤2 years of age. Details on serologic tests used and references are in Table 1.