CORONA VIRUS

CORONA VIRUS 

Coronaviruses are a family of viruses known for containing strains that cause potentially deadly diseases in mammals and birds. In humans they're typically spread via airborne droplets of fluid produced by infected individuals.

Some rare but notable strains, including Wuhan coronavirus (2019-nCoV), and qthose responsible for severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS) and Middle East respiratory syndrome (MERS), can cause death in humans.

First described in detail in the 1960s, the coronavirus gets its name from a distinctive corona or 'crown' of sugary-proteins that projects from the envelope surrounding the particle. Encoding the virus's make-up is the longest genome of any RNA-based virus – a single strand of nucleic acid roughly 26,000 to 32,000 bases long. 

There are four known genuses in the family, named Alphacoronavirus, Betacoronavirus, Gammacoronavirus, and Deltacoronavirus. The first two only infect mammals, including bats, pigs, cats, and humans.

In the study, published  (Jan. 29) in the journal The Lancet, the researchers analyzed 10 genome sequences of the novel coronavirus, dubbed 2019-nCoV, obtained from nine patients in China who were sick with the virus. 

They found that all 10 of the genome sequences were extremely similar — they shared more than 99.98% of the same genetic sequence, the authors said. This suggests the virus made its "jump" to humans very recently, because if that jump had happened long ago, the virus sequences would have differed more, given the fast rate at which viruses tend to mutate and evolve.

"It is striking that the sequences of 2019-nCoV described here from different patients were almost identical," study co-lead author Weifeng Shi, a professor at the Key Laboratory of Etiology and Epidemiology of Emerging Infectious Diseases in Universities of Shandong Province, affiliated with Shandong First Medical University, said in a statement. "This finding suggests that 2019-nCoV originated from one source within a very short period and was detected relatively rapidly." 

INFECTED PEOPLE AND COUNTRIES

Despite emerging in humans only recently, the virus has already infected about 6,000 people and caused 132 deaths in China, while spreading to 25 other countries, according to the World Health Organization. Most of the initial cases occurred in people who worked at or visited the Huanan seafood market in Wuhan, China, where a variety of wild animals were sold.

"It seems likely that another animal host is acting as an intermediate host between bats and humans," said study co-lead author Guizhen Wu, of the Chinese Center for Disease Control and Prevention.

Overall, the outbreak of 2019-nCoV "again highlights the hidden virus reservoir in wild animals and their potential to occasionally spill over into human populations," the authors wrote.

A previous study suggested snakes, which were sold at the Huanan seafood market, as a possible source of 2019-nCoV. However, some experts have criticized the study, saying it's unclear if coronaviruses can infect snakes. 

It is about 25 countries who are enfected by coronavirus. Due to this virus other countries starts to call there people from China, and Wuhan. Some countries send there special flights or buses to China to bring their citizens. Some  airlines canceled their flights to and from China. China also recommend its citizens to avoid traveling. 

India will provide all possible assistance to its nationals on board the quarantined cruise ship moored off the Japanese coast to return home after they test negative in the final coronavirus tests that would begin on Monday, the Indian Embassy said on Sunday.

A total of 138 Indians, including 132 crew and 6 passengers, were among the 3,711 people on board the ship, Diamond Princess, that arrived at the Japanese coast earlier this month.

Deaths frm coronavirus outside China

A 44-year-old man in the Philippines has become the second person there infected with the novel coronavirus and the first known death linked to the virus outside of China, according to the Department of Health of the Republic of the Philippines. The man died on Feb. 1, the DOH said in a statement, adding: "Our thoughts are with his family at this difficult time."

On Feb. 4, a 39-year-old man died from 2019-nCoV in Hong Kong, according to the New York Times. It's the first death in Hong Kong and the second outside mainland China.

  Feb. 7,The death toll from the virus was at least 638 as of Thursday evening. All but two of the deaths were in mainland China, with one person succumbing in the Philippines and another in Hong Kong. More than 31,000 people have been infected with the virus worldwide, the vast majority of them in China. 

Feb.8, The number of deaths from China’s new coronavirus epidemic jumped to 722 on Saturday, surpassing the toll from the SARS outbreak on the mainland and Hong Kong almost two decades ago.

Another 86 people died from the virus, according to the national health commission, with all but five in hard-hit Hubei province, where the disease emerged in December. 

The death toll from the corona virus soared to 803 in China on Sunday, according to official figures, overtaking the global toll for SARS.

With 81 more people dying in Hubei — the province at the centre of the outbreak — the toll is now higher than the 774 killed worldwide by the Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome in 2002-2003, according to figures released Sunday. 

Nearly 37,000 people have now been infected by the coronavirus in china, believed to have emerged last year in a market that sold wild animals in Hubei's capital Wuhan before spreading across China

Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS), a disease in the same family as the new coronavirus, left nearly 650 people dead in mainland China and Hong Kong in 2002-2003. More than 120 others died around the world.

The death toll from coronavirus surged past 900 in mainland China on February 10, overtaking global fatalities in the 2002-03 SARS epidemic, even as the World Health Organization said the outbreak appeared to be stabilising.

The number of fatalities from China’s new coronavirus epidemic jumped to 1,011 nationwide on February 11 after hard-hit Hubei Province reported 103 new deaths.

In its daily update, Hubei’s health commission also confirmed another 2,097 new cases in the central Province, where the outbreak emerged in December.

The number of fatalities from China's new coronavirus epidemic jumped to 1,110 nationwide on February 12 after hard-hit Hubei province reported 94 new deaths.

In its daily update, Hubei's health commission also confirmed another 1,638 new cases in the central province, where the outbreak emerged in December. There are now more than 44,200 confirmed cases across China, based on previously released figures from the district government.

The number of fatalities and new cases from China's coronavirus outbreak soared on Thursday, with 242 more deaths and nearly 15,000 extra patients in hard-hit Hubei province as authorities changed their threshold for diagnosis.

Feb. 19
At least 1,355 people have now died nationwide and nearly 60,000 have been infected after Hubei's health commission reported the new numbers.In its daily update, Hubei's health commission confirmed another 14,840 new cases in the central province, where the outbreak emerged in December. 

The death toll from China's new coronavirus jumped past 2,000 on February 19 after 136 more people died, with the number of new cases falling for a second straight day, according to the National Health Commission. This brings the total number of confirmed cases in mainland China to 74,185.

The death toll rose to 2,004, with most of the deaths in central Hubei province, where the virus first emerged in December before spiralling into a nationwide epidemic. 

The death toll from coronavirus  epidemic jumped to 2,112 on Thursday after 108 more people died in Hubei province, the hard-hit epicentre of the outbreak

SYMPTOMS 

Symptoms of the new coronavirus include fever, cough and difficulty breathing, according to the CDC. It's estimated that symptoms may appear as soon as two days or as long as 14 days after exposure, the CDC said. The NEJM study published on Jan. 29 estimated that, on average, people show symptoms about five days after they are infected. 

Prevention

There is currently no vaccine to prevent 2019-nCoV infection. The best way to prevent infection is to avoid being exposed to this virus. However, as a reminder, CDC always recommends everyday preventive actions to help prevent the spread of respiratory viruses, including:

Wash your hands often with soap and water for at least 20 seconds, especially after going to the bathroom; before eating; and after blowing your nose, coughing, or sneezing.

1.If soap and water are not readily available, use an alcohol-based hand sanitizer with at least 60% alcohol. Always wash hands with soap and water if hands are visibly dirty.

2.Avoid touching your eyes, nose, and mouth with unwashed hands.

3.Avoid close contact with people who are sick.

4.Stay home when you are sick.

5.Cover your cough or sneeze with a tissue, then throw the tissue in the trash.

6.Clean and disinfect frequently touched objects and surfaces using a regular household cleaning spray or wipe.