Coronaviruses (CoVs) are enveloped viruses with a single-strand RNA genome that is one of the largest known viral genomes. This family of viruses looks similar to a crown when observed using electron microscopy, thus giving them the name “corona”. Middle East respiratory syndrome (MERS) and sever acute respiratory syndrome (SARS) are some of the better known types of corona, along with the current outbreak. CoV infections usually involve the upper respiratory tract and gastrointestinal tract, and vary from mild to severe symptoms, and sometimes even death. (S Su, et al., 2016). This paper compares six known coronaviruses that infect humans; HCoV 229E, HCoV-OC43, SARS-CoV-1, HCoV-NL63, HCoV-HKU1, and MERS-CoV. A description of where each virus was found, along with the symptoms of each virus, is briefly explained before going on to explain recombination events. These events are the main reason coronaviruses have such a high genetic diversity, which leads to unpredictable changes in virulence (S su, et al., 2016). Their conclusion is that with all the varying coronaviruses circulating in the wild, another outbreak is not a matter of if, but a matter of when.
Su S, Wong G, Shi W, Liu J, Lai ACK, Zhou J, Liu W, Bi Y, Gao GF. 2016. Epidemiology, Genetic Recombination, and Pathogenesis of Coronaviruses. Trends in Microbiology. 24(6):490–502. doi:10.1016/j.tim.2016.03.003.