A human coronavirus, called the Middle East respiratory syndrome coronavirus (MERS-CoV), was first identified in September 2012 in samples obtained from a Saudi Arabian businessman who died from acute respiratory failure. Since then, 49 cases of infections caused by MERS-CoV (previously called a novel coronavirus) with 26 deaths have been reported to date. In this report, we describe a family c...

Since the first diagnosis of Middle East respiratory syndrome (MERS) caused by the MERS coronavirus (MERS-CoV) in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia in 2012, sporadic cases and clusters have occurred throughout the country (1). During June-August, 2015, a large MERS outbreak occurred at King Abulaziz Medical City, a 1,200-bed tertiary-care hospital that includes a 150-bed emergency department that reg...

To the Editor: Middle East respiratory syndrome coronavirus (MERS-CoV) acquired from animals causes severe pneumonia in humans, with some chains of human-to-human transmission, leading to large outbreaks. MERS-CoV is a cause of concern for global public health. The only natural host of MERS-CoV identified so far is the dromedary camel (Camel dromedarius) (1,2), and transmission from camels to h...

The emergence of Middle East respiratory syndrome coronavirus (MERS-CoV) infection in 2012 resulted in an increased concern of the spread of the infection globally. MERS-CoV infection had previously caused multiple health-care-associated outbreaks and resulted in transmission of the virus within families. Community onset MERS-CoV cases continue to occur. Dromedary camels are currently the most ...

Recombination is a process that unlinks neighboring loci allowing for independent evolutionary trajectories within genomes of many organisms. If not properly accounted for, recombination can compromise many evolutionary analyses. In addition, when dealing with organisms that are not obligately sexually reproducing, recombination gives insight into the rate at which distinct genetic lineages com...

Middle East Respiratory Syndrome (MERS) is a severe respiratory illness first reported in Saudi Arabia that is caused by a coronavirus called MERS-CoV. This virus causes substantial fever, cough, and shortness of breath, and approximately half of the people afflicted have died. The MERS-CoV cases have occurred in or near the Arabian Peninsula, and to date no cases have been identified in the U....

Two novel coronaviruses have emerged to cause severe disease in humans. While bats may be the primary reservoir for both viruses, SARS coronavirus (SARS-CoV) likely crossed into humans from civets in China, and MERS coronavirus (MERS-CoV) has been transmitted from camels in the Middle East. Unlike SARS-CoV that resolved within a year, continued introductions of MERS-CoV present an on-going publ...

During March-May 2014, a Middle East respiratory syndrome (MERS) outbreak occurred in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, that included many persons who worked or received medical treatment at King Fahd General Hospital. We investigated 78 persons who had laboratory-confirmed MERS during March 2-May 10 and documented contact at this hospital. The 78 persons with MERS comprised 53 patients, 16 healthcare work...

The emergence of Middle East Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus (MERS-CoV) in the eastern Mediterranean and imported cases to Europe has alerted public health authorities. Currently, detection of MERS-CoV in patient samples is done by real-time RT-PCR. Samples collected from suspected cases are sent to highly-equipped centralized laboratories for screening. A rapid point-of-care test is needed to...

BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE Middle East respiratory syndrome (MERS) has a high mortality rate and pandemic potential. However, the neurological manifestations of MERS have rarely been reported since it first emerged in 2012. METHODS We evaluated four patients with laboratory-confirmed MERS coronavirus (CoV) infections who showed neurological complications during MERS treatment. These 4 patients we...