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Coronaviruses are large, often spherical, enveloped, single-stranded positive-sense RNA viruses, ranging in size from 80-220 nm. Their genomes and protein structures are highly conserved. Three coronaviruses have emerged over the last 20 years as serious human pathogens: SARS-CoV was identified as the causative agent in an outbreak in 2002-2003, Middle East respiratory syndrome (MERS) CoV emerged in 2012 and the novel coronavirus SARS-CoV-2 emerged in 2019-2020. SARS-CoV-2 is the virus responsible for the infectious disease termed COVID-19 (WHO Technical Guidance 2020).
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Concise Guide to PHARMACOLOGY citation:
Alexander SPH, Kelly E, Mathie AA, Peters JA, Veale EL, Armstrong JF, Buneman OP, Faccenda E, Harding SD, Spedding M, Cidlowski JA, Fabbro D, Davenport AP, Striessnig J, Davies JA et al. (2023) The Concise Guide to PHARMACOLOGY 2023/24: Introduction and Other Protein Targets. Br J Pharmacol. 180 Suppl 2:S1-22.
SARS-CoV-2 causes fewer fatalities than either of its predecessors MERS-CoV and SARS-CoV, but it is far more transmissible [17].