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Review
. 2023 Jan 6:12:1081370.
doi: 10.3389/fcimb.2022.1081370. eCollection 2022.

Cross-species transmission, evolution and zoonotic potential of coronaviruses

Qian Li  1   2   3 , Taif Shah  1   2 , Binghui Wang  1   2 , Linyu Qu  1   2 , Rui Wang  1   2 , Yutong Hou  1   2 , Zulqarnain Baloch  1   2 , Xueshan Xia  1   2
Affiliations
Review

Cross-species transmission, evolution and zoonotic potential of coronaviruses

Qian Li et al. Front Cell Infect Microbiol. .

Abstract

Coronaviruses (CoVs) continuously evolve, crossing species barriers and spreading across host ranges. Over the last two decades, several CoVs (HCoV-229E, HCoV-NL63, HCoV-HKU1, HCoV-OC43, SARS-CoV, MERS-CoV, and SARS-CoV-2) have emerged in animals and mammals, causing significant economic and human life losses. Due to CoV cross-species transmission and the evolution of novel viruses, it is critical to identify their natural reservoiurs and the circumstances under which their transmission occurs. In this review, we use genetic and ecological data to disentangle the evolution of various CoVs in wildlife, humans, and domestic mammals. We thoroughly investigate several host species and outline the epidemiology of CoVs toward specific hosts. We also discuss the cross-species transmission of CoVs at the interface of wildlife, animals, and humans. Clarifying the epidemiology and diversity of species reservoirs will significantly impact our ability to respond to the future emergence of CoVs in humans and domestic animals.

Keywords: coronaviruses; cross-species transmission; epidemiology; evolution; zoonosis.

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Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare that the research was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
For RdRp gene homology analysis, 93 known RdRp gene amino acid sequences were retrieved from the NCBI database to construct a phylogenetic tree using Mega X software. The tree shows alpha and beta CoVs genera had the highest RdRp amino acid sequence homology, followed by gamma and delta viruses.
Figure 2
Figure 2
Cross-species transmission of CoVs is common among various animals. The arrows indicate the direction of virus transmission. The transmission sources of seven CoVs (all belonging to genera α and β) infecting humans are depicted are intragenus mutual transmission. There have been no reports of human infections with genera γ or δ, which calls for additional research in the future.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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