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Highlights Bats serve as natural reservoirs for a variety of viruses. Transmission of highly pathogenic viruses from bats has been suspected and linked to a spectrum of emerging infectious diseases in humans and animals worldwide. Examples of such viruses include Marburg, Ebola, Nipah, Hendra, Influenza A, Dengue, Equine Encephalitis viruses, Lyssaviruses, Madariaga and Coronaviruses, involving the now pandemic Severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). Herein, we provide a comprehensive review on the diversity, reservoirs, and geographical distribution of the main bat viruses and their potential for cross-species transmission.

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As the Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) pandemic continues to expand, healthcare resources globally have been spread thin. Now, the disease is rapidly spreading across South America, with deadly consequences in areas with already weakened public health systems. The Amazon region is particularly susceptible to the widespread devastation from Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) because of its immunologically fragile native Amerindian inhabitants and epidemiologic vulnerabilities. Herein, we discuss the current situation and potential impact of COVID-19 in the Amazon region and how further spread of the epidemic wave could prove devastating for many Amerindian people living in the Amazon rainforest.

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