The mysterious and deadly flu-like illness from Asia that has stymied health officials around the world appears to be caused by a new variety of a common cold virus, US health officials said.
The head of the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) said Monday a number of tests had revealed traces of a form of microbe known as a coronavirus in the tissue of people infected with the unidentified disease.
"There's very strong evidence to support coronavirus" as the cause, said CDC director Julie Gerberding at a news conference. However, she cautioned that more testing is needed before experts can be certain.
Many different viruses can cause colds, including three different varieties of the coronavirus. Until now, in fact, the cold is the only human ailment known to be caused by coronaviruses, but the CDC said the culprit in the Asian outbreak appears to be genetically different and probably represents a fourth type.
Just what that means for treating severe acute respiratory syndrome, SARS, which has killed 17 and sickened 456 worldwide -- including 39 in the US -- since Feb. 1, is unclear. There aren't any federally approved treatments for the common cold.
But there has been progress with antivirals against other respiratory viruses, particularly influenza, and some of those drugs have been effective in studies against some coronaviruses. The Defense Department will test the virus against all known antiviral drugs to see if any work.
Researchers worry that any virus they find in patients may be an innocent bystander.
Among the bits of evidence suggesting the new coronavirus really is the cause is the discovery that victims develop an immune system response to it during the course of their illness.
The coronavirus is responsible for 10 to 20 percent of common colds and respiratory illnesses that sometimes lead to bronchitis and pneumonia.
Some forms of coronaviruses can be much more dangerous, causing significant lower respiratory tract illnesses among animals, said Dr. Frederick Hayden, clinical virologist for the University of Virginia Health System.
"If this is coronavirus, it certainly would be a novel one, different than how the recognized human coronaviruses behave," Hayden said. "But, if confirmed, it's a very important step forward in trying to ... re-understand its epidemiology and to devise methods for coping with it."
The illness first gained attention in Hong Kong, Singapore and Vietnam, where it has spread among health workers in hospitals. Health authorities say it appears to spread from close contact, primarily through nasal fluids by coughing or sneezing.
The Geneva-based World Health Organization (WHO) issued a worldwide travel alert March 15 warning people to watch for symptoms after traveling to places where the disease had appeared. The WHO also got its network of 11 labs around the world working to find the cause and treatment of the disease.
Gerberding's announcement followed comments earlier Monday from a WHO scientist who said for the first time that coronavirus was a possible cause.
But the virologist, Dr. Klaus Stohr, continued to give more weight to a different virus, described by WHO officials earlier, the paramyxovirus.
Gerberding said her researchers had not found that virus in their tissue samples.
Meanwhile, fears of the disease seemed to spread in some Asian centers: Singapore quarantined more than 700 people who may have been exposed to the disease, threatening them with fines; Hong Kong officials met to draw up health guidelines for everything from restaurants to bus systems in an attempt to slow its spread.
Hong Kong's health secretary, Dr. Yeoh Eng-kiong, called SARS "a really very alarming disease," the likes of which Hong Kong has never seen.
On Sunday, the territory's top health official was hospitalized with the respiratory symptoms indicative of the disease, which merely added to the anxiety.
"I think it's spreading very quickly," said Lisa Fung, a masked 44-year-old worker at a domestic help recruitment agency. "Even William Ho has got it and he hasn't had to go treat the patients."
CARROT AND STICK: While unrelenting in its military threats, China attracted nearly 40,000 Taiwanese to over 400 business events last year Nearly 40,000 Taiwanese last year joined industry events in China, such as conferences and trade fairs, supported by the Chinese government, a study showed yesterday, as Beijing ramps up a charm offensive toward Taipei alongside military pressure. China has long taken a carrot-and-stick approach to Taiwan, threatening it with the prospect of military action while reaching out to those it believes are amenable to Beijing’s point of view. Taiwanese security officials are wary of what they see as Beijing’s influence campaigns to sway public opinion after Taipei and Beijing gradually resumed travel links halted by the COVID-19 pandemic, but the scale of
TRADE: A mandatory declaration of origin for manufactured goods bound for the US is to take effect on May 7 to block China from exploiting Taiwan’s trade channels All products manufactured in Taiwan and exported to the US must include a signed declaration of origin starting on May 7, the Bureau of Foreign Trade announced yesterday. US President Donald Trump on April 2 imposed a 32 percent tariff on imports from Taiwan, but one week later announced a 90-day pause on its implementation. However, a universal 10 percent tariff was immediately applied to most imports from around the world. On April 12, the Trump administration further exempted computers, smartphones and semiconductors from the new tariffs. In response, President William Lai’s (賴清德) administration has introduced a series of countermeasures to support affected
Pope Francis is be laid to rest on Saturday after lying in state for three days in St Peter’s Basilica, where the faithful are expected to flock to pay their respects to history’s first Latin American pontiff. The cardinals met yesterday in the Vatican’s synod hall to chart the next steps before a conclave begins to choose Francis’ successor, as condolences poured in from around the world. According to current norms, the conclave must begin between May 5 and 10. The cardinals set the funeral for Saturday at 10am in St Peter’s Square, to be celebrated by the dean of the College
CROSS-STRAIT: The vast majority of Taiwanese support maintaining the ‘status quo,’ while concern is rising about Beijing’s influence operations More than eight out of 10 Taiwanese reject Beijing’s “one country, two systems” framework for cross-strait relations, according to a survey released by the Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) on Thursday. The MAC’s latest quarterly survey found that 84.4 percent of respondents opposed Beijing’s “one country, two systems” formula for handling cross-strait relations — a figure consistent with past polling. Over the past three years, opposition to the framework has remained high, ranging from a low of 83.6 percent in April 2023 to a peak of 89.6 percent in April last year. In the most recent poll, 82.5 percent also rejected China’s
RSS