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Review
. 2020 Mar 20;9(3):231.
doi: 10.3390/pathogens9030231.

SARS-CoV-2 and Coronavirus Disease 2019: What We Know So Far

Firas A Rabi  1 , Mazhar S Al Zoubi  2 , Ghena A Kasasbeh  3 , Dunia M Salameh  3 , Amjad D Al-Nasser  4
Affiliations
Review

SARS-CoV-2 and Coronavirus Disease 2019: What We Know So Far

Firas A Rabi et al. Pathogens. .

Abstract

In December 2019, a cluster of fatal pneumonia cases presented in Wuhan, China. They were caused by a previously unknown coronavirus. All patients had been associated with the Wuhan Wholefood market, where seafood and live animals are sold. The virus spread rapidly and public health authorities in China initiated a containment effort. However, by that time, travelers had carried the virus to many countries, sparking memories of the previous coronavirus epidemics, severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS) and Middle East respiratory syndrome (MERS), and causing widespread media attention and panic. Based on clinical criteria and available serological and molecular information, the new disease was called coronavirus disease of 2019 (COVID-19), and the novel coronavirus was called SARS Coronavirus-2 (SARS-CoV-2), emphasizing its close relationship to the 2002 SARS virus (SARS-CoV). The scientific community raced to uncover the origin of the virus, understand the pathogenesis of the disease, develop treatment options, define the risk factors, and work on vaccine development. Here we present a summary of current knowledge regarding the novel coronavirus and the disease it causes.

Keywords: COVID-19; Coronavirus; SARS; SARS-CoV-2; Wuhan; pandemic.

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Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare no conflict of interest.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Timeline of the SARS-CoV-2 epidemic, with significant dates noted. Each blue bar represents the cumulative number of COVID-19 patients diagnosed to that day, and the red bar the cumulative number of deaths. At each date, the actual numbers are present. Data from Worldometer [13].
Figure 2
Figure 2
Animal origins of human coronaviruses. Severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus (SARS-CoV) and Middle East respiratory syndrome coronavirus (MERS-CoV) and were transmitted to humans from bats by civet cats and dromedary camels, respectively. The 2019 SARS-CoV-2 was likely transmitted to humans through pangolins that are illegally sold in Chinese markets [16,17].
Figure 3
Figure 3
(A) Spike proteins on the surface of the coronavirus bind to angiotensin-converting enzyme 2 (ACE-2) receptors on the surface of the target cell; (B) The type II transmembrane serine protease (TMPRSS2) binds to and cleaves the ACE-2 receptor. In the process, the spike protein is activated; (C) Cleaved ACE-2 and activated spike protein facilitate viral entry. TMPRSS2 expression increases cellular uptake of the coronavirus [20,21,22].
Figure 4
Figure 4
Estimating case fatality rate using different lag periods in (A) Hubei and (B) the rest of China. Credit to Nucleuswealth.com [14].
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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