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Int J Infect Dis. Community Case Clusters of Middle East Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus in Hafr Al-Batin, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia: A Descriptive Genomic study [OA]
[Source: ScienceDirect, full page: (LINK). Abstract, edited.]
International Journal of Infectious Diseases, Available online 31 March 2014 / In Press, Accepted Manuscript.
Community Case Clusters of Middle East Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus in Hafr Al-Batin, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia: A Descriptive Genomic study
Ziad A. Memish<sup>a</sup><sup>, </sup><sup>b</sup>, Matthew Cotten<sup>c</sup>, Simon J. Watson<sup>c</sup>, Paul Kellam<sup>c</sup>, Alimuddin Zumla<sup>d</sup>, Rafat F. Alhakeem<sup>a</sup>, Abdullah Assiri<sup>a</sup>, Abdullah A. Al Rabeeah<sup>a</sup>, Jaffar A. Al-Tawfiq<sup>e</sup>
<sup></sup>
<sup>a</sup> Global Centre for Mass Gatherings Medicine (GCMGM), Ministry of Health, Riyadh, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia; <sup>b</sup> College of Medicine, Alfaisal University, Riyadh, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia; <sup>c</sup> Wellcome Trust Sanger Institute, Hinxton, United Kingdom; <sup>d</sup> Division of Infection and Immunity, University College London, and UCL Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust, London, United Kingdom; <sup>e</sup> Saudi Aramco Medical Services Organization, Saudi Aramco, Dhahran, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and Indiana University School of Medicine, Indianapolis, IN (USA)
Available online 31 March 2014 - License: http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/3.0/ - http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.ijid.2014.03.1372
Open Access
Summary
The Middle East respiratory syndrome coronavirus (MERS-CoV) was first described in September 2012 and had caused a total of 191 cases of MERS-CoV infection with 82 deaths. Camels have been implicated as the reservoir of MERS-CoV, but the exact source and mode of transmission for most patients remain unknown. During a 3 month period, June to August 2013, there were 12 positive MERS-CoV cases reported from the Hafr Al-Batin district in the north east region of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. In addition to the different regional camel festivals in neighboring countries, Hafr Al-Batin has the biggest camel market in the entire Kingdom and host an annual camel festival. Thus, we conducted a detailed epidemiological, clinical and genomic study to ascertain common exposure and transmission patterns of all cases of MERS-CoV reported from Hafr Al-Batin. The genetic data indicated that at least two of the infected contacts could not have been directly infected from the index patient and alternate source should be considered. Camels appear as the likely source but other animals have not been ruled out. More detailed case control studies with detailed case histories, epidemiological information and genomic analysis are being conducted to delineate the missing pieces in the transmission dynamics of MERS-CoV outbreak.
Keywords: Middle East; Community; Clusters; MERS-CoV; RT-PCR; Molecular Diagnosis; Genome; phylogeny; Coronavirus
Corresponding author. Deputy Minister for Public Health, and Director WHO Collaborating Center for Mass Gathering Medicine Ministry of Health, and Professor, Al-Faisal University, Riyadh 11176, KSA.
Copyright ? 2014 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.
Note to users: Accepted manuscripts are Articles in Press that have been peer reviewed and accepted for publication by the Editorial Board of this journal. They have not yet been copy edited and/or formatted in the journal house style, and may not yet have the full ScienceDirect functionality, e.g., supplementary files may still need to be added, links to references may not resolve yet etc. The text could still change before final publication.
Although accepted manuscripts do not have all bibliographic details available yet, they can already be cited using the year of online publication and the DOI, as follows: author(s), article title, journal (year), DOI. Please consult the journal's reference style for the exact appearance of these elements, abbreviation of journal names and use of punctuation.
When the final article is assigned to an issue of the journal, the Article in Press version will be removed and the final version will appear in the associated published issue of the journal. The date the article was first made available online will be carried over.
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link to open access pdf: http://www.sciencedirect.com/science...14519-main.pdf
International Journal of Infectious Diseases, Available online 31 March 2014 / In Press, Accepted Manuscript.
Community Case Clusters of Middle East Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus in Hafr Al-Batin, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia: A Descriptive Genomic study
Ziad A. Memish<sup>a</sup><sup>, </sup><sup>b</sup>, Matthew Cotten<sup>c</sup>, Simon J. Watson<sup>c</sup>, Paul Kellam<sup>c</sup>, Alimuddin Zumla<sup>d</sup>, Rafat F. Alhakeem<sup>a</sup>, Abdullah Assiri<sup>a</sup>, Abdullah A. Al Rabeeah<sup>a</sup>, Jaffar A. Al-Tawfiq<sup>e</sup>
<sup></sup>
<sup>a</sup> Global Centre for Mass Gatherings Medicine (GCMGM), Ministry of Health, Riyadh, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia; <sup>b</sup> College of Medicine, Alfaisal University, Riyadh, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia; <sup>c</sup> Wellcome Trust Sanger Institute, Hinxton, United Kingdom; <sup>d</sup> Division of Infection and Immunity, University College London, and UCL Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust, London, United Kingdom; <sup>e</sup> Saudi Aramco Medical Services Organization, Saudi Aramco, Dhahran, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and Indiana University School of Medicine, Indianapolis, IN (USA)
Available online 31 March 2014 - License: http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/3.0/ - http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.ijid.2014.03.1372
Open Access
Summary
The Middle East respiratory syndrome coronavirus (MERS-CoV) was first described in September 2012 and had caused a total of 191 cases of MERS-CoV infection with 82 deaths. Camels have been implicated as the reservoir of MERS-CoV, but the exact source and mode of transmission for most patients remain unknown. During a 3 month period, June to August 2013, there were 12 positive MERS-CoV cases reported from the Hafr Al-Batin district in the north east region of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. In addition to the different regional camel festivals in neighboring countries, Hafr Al-Batin has the biggest camel market in the entire Kingdom and host an annual camel festival. Thus, we conducted a detailed epidemiological, clinical and genomic study to ascertain common exposure and transmission patterns of all cases of MERS-CoV reported from Hafr Al-Batin. The genetic data indicated that at least two of the infected contacts could not have been directly infected from the index patient and alternate source should be considered. Camels appear as the likely source but other animals have not been ruled out. More detailed case control studies with detailed case histories, epidemiological information and genomic analysis are being conducted to delineate the missing pieces in the transmission dynamics of MERS-CoV outbreak.
Keywords: Middle East; Community; Clusters; MERS-CoV; RT-PCR; Molecular Diagnosis; Genome; phylogeny; Coronavirus
Corresponding author. Deputy Minister for Public Health, and Director WHO Collaborating Center for Mass Gathering Medicine Ministry of Health, and Professor, Al-Faisal University, Riyadh 11176, KSA.
Copyright ? 2014 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.
Note to users: Accepted manuscripts are Articles in Press that have been peer reviewed and accepted for publication by the Editorial Board of this journal. They have not yet been copy edited and/or formatted in the journal house style, and may not yet have the full ScienceDirect functionality, e.g., supplementary files may still need to be added, links to references may not resolve yet etc. The text could still change before final publication.
Although accepted manuscripts do not have all bibliographic details available yet, they can already be cited using the year of online publication and the DOI, as follows: author(s), article title, journal (year), DOI. Please consult the journal's reference style for the exact appearance of these elements, abbreviation of journal names and use of punctuation.
When the final article is assigned to an issue of the journal, the Article in Press version will be removed and the final version will appear in the associated published issue of the journal. The date the article was first made available online will be carried over.
-
------
link to open access pdf: http://www.sciencedirect.com/science...14519-main.pdf