tetano
Editor, Senior Moderator
FEMS Microbiol Rev
. 2025 May 28:fuaf023.
doi: 10.1093/femsre/fuaf023. Online ahead of print. The Batalogue: An overview of betacoronaviruses with future pandemic potential
Sarah Baird[SUP] 1 2 3 [/SUP], Edward C Holmes[SUP] 2 [/SUP], Caroline L Ashley[SUP] 1 2 3 [/SUP], James A Triccas[SUP] 1 2 3 4 [/SUP], Megan Steain[SUP] 1 2 3 [/SUP]
Affiliations
The COVID-19 pandemic has intensified interest in the global diversity of RNA viruses and their ability to jump hosts, with a notable expansion in the number of known betacoronaviruses in wild mammalian species, particularly bats. This has enabled vaccine development research to shift its focus to include a range of SARS-CoV-1 and SARS-CoV-2 related viruses from animal species, with the intention of developing broadly protective coronavirus vaccines and therapeutics. However, there is currently a lack of synthesis of this expanding knowledge base of viruses with potential to cause another severe disease outbreak. This has led to many vaccine trials considering protection against a small subset of known betacoronaviruses that poorly approximate the true diversity of this group of viruses. This review aims to synthesise information gained from the recent surge in betacoronavirus characterisation, providing a catalogue of viruses exhibiting features that pose a risk to public health, together with a framework for assessing their likelihood of emergence and subsequent transmission through human populations. This information will help inform global pandemic preparedness measures before a novel betacoronavirus outbreak occurs.
. 2025 May 28:fuaf023.
doi: 10.1093/femsre/fuaf023. Online ahead of print. The Batalogue: An overview of betacoronaviruses with future pandemic potential
Sarah Baird[SUP] 1 2 3 [/SUP], Edward C Holmes[SUP] 2 [/SUP], Caroline L Ashley[SUP] 1 2 3 [/SUP], James A Triccas[SUP] 1 2 3 4 [/SUP], Megan Steain[SUP] 1 2 3 [/SUP]
Affiliations
- PMID: 40434829
- DOI: 10.1093/femsre/fuaf023
The COVID-19 pandemic has intensified interest in the global diversity of RNA viruses and their ability to jump hosts, with a notable expansion in the number of known betacoronaviruses in wild mammalian species, particularly bats. This has enabled vaccine development research to shift its focus to include a range of SARS-CoV-1 and SARS-CoV-2 related viruses from animal species, with the intention of developing broadly protective coronavirus vaccines and therapeutics. However, there is currently a lack of synthesis of this expanding knowledge base of viruses with potential to cause another severe disease outbreak. This has led to many vaccine trials considering protection against a small subset of known betacoronaviruses that poorly approximate the true diversity of this group of viruses. This review aims to synthesise information gained from the recent surge in betacoronavirus characterisation, providing a catalogue of viruses exhibiting features that pose a risk to public health, together with a framework for assessing their likelihood of emergence and subsequent transmission through human populations. This information will help inform global pandemic preparedness measures before a novel betacoronavirus outbreak occurs.