MERS-CoV: Virologic Confirmation in Camels

Investigation of a farm outbreak revealed nearly identical virus in camels and two human cases.

In October 2013, laboratory-confirmed Middle East respiratory syndrome coronavirus (MERS-CoV) infection was recorded in two men who were exposed both to animals and to each other on a Qatari farm. Investigators collected serum and rectal and nasal swab specimens from all 14 dromedary camels on the farm for virologic study, as well as stool samples from three camel cages.

MERS-CoV was detected in the nasal swab specimens from each of three camels by three independent reverse-transcription polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) assays and confirmed with sequencing. The nucleotide sequence of a 4.2-kb fragment was very similar to viral sequences obtained from the two human cases on the same farm — and from a human case in Saudi Arabia in 2013. Anot…

Reviewing Author

Mary E. Wilson, MD

Disclosures

Consultant/Advisory BoardOneHealthTrust (formerly Center for Disease Dynamics, Economics, and Policy); Global Health Institute, University of Wisconsin

RoyaltiesUpToDate

Editorial BoardsJournal of Travel Medicine

Mary E. Wilson, MD

Disclosures

Consultant/Advisory BoardOneHealthTrust (formerly Center for Disease Dynamics, Economics, and Policy); Global Health Institute, University of Wisconsin

RoyaltiesUpToDate

Editorial BoardsJournal of Travel Medicine

MERS-CoV: Virologic Confirmation in Camels

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Reviewing Author