Middle East respiratory syndrome (MERS) is caused by the virus called, Middle East respiratory syndrome coronavirus (MERS-CoV). MERS-CoV belongs to the viral family of Coronaviridae of the genus beta Coronavirus. The aim of this article is to bring the recent developments on the virology, clinical features, epidemiology and prevention of MERS-CoV. Review of literature was conducted on MERS-CoV its past and present outbreaks, its relationship with SARS-CoV-2, virology, clinical features, complications, mortality rate, epidemiology, treatment and prevention. The literature search was performed between January 2010 to November 2024. The article listed in google scholar, Scopus, Web of Sciences, Embase, Hinari were used for this study. During this study we observed many interesting findings. This virus contains a single-stranded, non-segmented positive sense RNA genome of around 30 kb. Their morphological structures include a bi-layer lipoprotein envelope with glycoprotein spikes on the surface, surrounding the capsid containing the genome. It has several structural proteins, such as the protein envelope (E) protein and the spike (S) protein. This virus is genetically related to severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus-2 (SARS-CoV-2) the causative agent of COVID-19. We would like to conclude that, MERS-CoV was identified in dromedary camels, and these camels acted as a source for transmission of the virus to humans as zoonosis. There were many cases of hospital (nosocomial) MERS outbreaks that have also been documented in Saudi Arabia. The clinical spectrum of MERS-CoV ranges from asymptomatic or mild respiratory illness to severe respiratory failure and multi-organ dysfunction. The case fatality rate of MERS-CoV was 36%, much higher than COVID-19. The future perspective of this study recommends that more detailed research to be carried out on molecular aspects, virulence, development of effective antiviral agents to counter MERS-CoV future outbreaks.
Key words: MERS-CoV, Dromedary camels, Mortality, Pathogenesis, Coronavirus
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