In the majority of cases, individuals are thought to have caught Mers (Middle-East respiratory syndrome) through close contact with infected patients in hospital.
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“In view of… the increasing number of cases of MERS-coronavirus, and due to the around-the-clock large numbers of patients in the ER at KAMC-R and the difficulty of applying quarantine measures, preventive measures have been upgraded”, explained Hanan Balkhi, executive director of the hospital’s Infection Prevention and Control Department. However, more research will be conducted to further develop the vaccine for humans.
Experts have theorised that camels could harbour the virus, and health officials suspect that sporadic zoonotic transmission plays a role in fueling MERS-CoV transmission in the Middle East.
“gThe significant recent increase in MERS cases, coupled with the lack of effective antiviral therapies or vaccines to treat or prevent this infection, have raised significant concern”, David Weiner professor at Perelman School of Medicine noted.
Prof Andrew Easton, from Warwick University, said the data show that the vaccine is capable of generating protective antibodies in laboratory studies and also in camels.
Saudi Arabia has already announced the banning of sacrificing camels as part of the Haj rituals this year, as among the steps to curb the virus’ spread.
Tourists wear masks as a precaution against the MERS virus at the Incheon global Airport on June 6, 2015 in Incheon, South Korea.
One of the new confirmed cases is a 40-year-old woman who is an expatriate healthcare worker.
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In spite of the fact that it doesn’t pass effortlessly between people, the infection has a high death rate, with 480 of the 1,115 individuals Saudi Arabia has affirmed as having gotten MERS since 2012 diminishing from it. People who are at most risk of developing the more severe form of the disease are older people, and people with compromised immune systems and underlying health conditions such as diabetes, cancer and chronic lung disease. The findings suggest that the current approach, in which vaccine design is guided by an understanding of structure of viral components and their interactions with host cells, holds promise for developing a similar human MERS vaccine regimen. However, supportive treatment can be given to the patient to help manage the symptoms.
