A review: Dromedary camels as the main reservoir for human Middle East respiratory syndrome (MERS) infections.
March 16th, 2019Sikkema, R., Farag, E., Islam, M., Atta, M., Reusken, C., Al-Hajri, M., & Koopmans, M. (2019). Global status of Middle East respiratory syndrome coronavirus in dromedary camels: A systematic review. Epidemiology and Infection, 147, E84. doi:10.1017/S095026881800345X
“…..In general, camels only show minor clinical signs of disease after being infected with MERS-CoV. Serological evidence of MERS-CoV in camels has been found in 20 countries, with molecular evidence for virus circulation in 13 countries. The seroprevalence of MERS-CoV antibodies increases with age in camels, while the prevalence of viral shedding as determined by MERS-CoV RNA detection in nasal swabs decreases. In several studies, camels that were sampled at animal markets or quarantine facilities were seropositive more often than camels at farms as well as imported camels vs. locally bred camels. Some studies show a relatively higher seroprevalence and viral detection during the cooler winter months. …..”