Abstract
A countrywide survey in Oman revealed Middle Eastrespiratory syndrome coronavirus (MERS-CoV) nucleicacid in five of 76 dromedary camels. Camel-derivedMERS-CoV sequences (3,754 nucleotides assembled from partial sequences of the open reading frame (ORF)1a, spike, and ORF4b genes) from Oman and Qatar were slightly different from each other, but closely related to human MERS-CoV sequences from the same geographical areas, suggesting local zoonotic transmission. High viral loads in nasal and conjunctival swabs suggest possible transmission by the respiratory route.
Publication types
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Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't
MeSH terms
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Animals
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Camelus / virology*
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Coronavirus / genetics
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Coronavirus / isolation & purification*
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Coronavirus Infections / diagnosis
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Coronavirus Infections / epidemiology
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Coronavirus Infections / veterinary*
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Coronavirus Infections / virology
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Disease Outbreaks / veterinary*
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Disease Reservoirs / virology*
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Humans
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Molecular Sequence Data
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Oman / epidemiology
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RNA, Viral / analysis
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Reverse Transcriptase Polymerase Chain Reaction
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Sequence Analysis, RNA
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Zoonoses / diagnosis*
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Zoonoses / epidemiology
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Zoonoses / virology