Concise review of the coronavirus disease 2019 outbreak

Abstract

Coronaviruses have been well known for causing common cold syndrome in healthy people. Two beta-coronaviruses that emerged from animal reservoirs, severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus (SARS-CoV), and Middle East respiratory syndrome coronavirus caused global epidemics in 2002 and 2012. In December 2019, a cluster of pneumonia cases in the city of Wuhan in the province of Hubei, China, with an unknown etiology was reported by Chinese authorities. The full genomic sequence of the novel coronavirus was released by January 2020 and it was designated the 2019 novel coronavirus by the World Health Organization (WHO). Later, the International Committee on the Taxonomy of Viruses named it SARS-CoV-2 and the WHO designated this new disease as COVID-19. By June 22, 2020, there were 8,860,331 confirmed cases globally, and a total of 465,740 deaths. At present, there is no approved vaccine against SARS-CoV-2 and no specific medication for treatment, although some drugs have shown some in vitro activity and promising outcomes regarding mortality in recent clinical trials. As of today, the most effective mechanism in prevention is avoidance of exposure and basic respiratory hygiene. Caution is warranted due to the great amount of available information rapidly obtained, and the fact that there is scientific uncertainty. Answers will be found with well-designed studies that require time and patience.