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Coronaviruses: emerging and re-emerging pathogens in humans and animals

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Edited by
Alan McLachlan, PhD, University of Illinois at Chicago, USA
Leo Poon, PhD, University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong

This thematic series published in Virology Journal emphasizes advances and key discoveries in the animal origin, viral evolution, epidemiology, diagnostics and pathogenesis of different emerging and re-emerging coronaviruses.

We are proud to announce that "Coronaviruses: emerging and re-emerging pathogens in humans and animals" is currently open for submissions - please submit here.

Originally published in 2015 and addressing the serious outbreaks of the severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS), porcine epidemic diarrhea virus (PEDV), and the Middle East respiratory syndrome (MERS), this thematic series is now again timely due to the new SARS-CoV-2 virus, responsible for an outbreak of respiratory illness known as COVID-19, which has spread to several countries around the world.

The Editors of Virology Journal felt that it would be timely and appropriate to relaunch a new call for papers to be published in this thematic series.

This collection of articles has not been sponsored and articles have undergone the journal’s standard peer-review process. The Guest Editors declare no competing interests.

Submission instructions

Before submitting your manuscript, please ensure you have carefully read the submission guidelines for Virology Journal.

The complete manuscript should be submitted through the journal submission system.

To ensure that you submit to the correct thematic series please select this thematic series in the drop-down menu upon submission.


View all collections in Virology Journal.

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  1. The pathogenicity and virulence of the Omicron strain have weakened significantly pathogenesis of Omicron variants. Accumulating data indicated accessory proteins play crucial roles in host immune evasion and ...

    Authors: Zhizhong Tang, Pei Yu, Qianfang Guo, Mingxiao Chen, Yu Lei, Lei Zhou, Weikang Mai, Lu Chen, Min Deng, Weiya Kong, Chuanying Niu, Xiaoli Xiong, Wenrui Li, Chunbo Chen, Changchun Lai, Qian Wang…
    Citation: Virology Journal 2023 20:106
    Content type: Research Published on:

  2. Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) is a worldwide pandemic challenge spreading enormously within a few months. COVID-19 is characterized by the over-activation of the immune system causing cytokine storm. Ins...

    Authors: Amal A. Mohamed, Aya A. Nour, Noha M. Mosbah, Alaa S. M. Wahba, Omnia E. Esmail, Basem Eysa, Ahmed Heiba, Hussin H. Samir, Ahmed A. El-Kassas, Ahmed S. Adroase, Ahmed Y. Elamir, Ghada M. Mahmoud, Rasha S. Rafaat, Hatem A. Hassan and Yasmine S. El Abd
    Citation: Virology Journal 2023 20:94
    Content type: Research Published on:

  3. Increased systematic pro-inflammatory cytokines is the main cause of the inflammatory conditions of the hospitalized severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) infected patients. In this proj...

    Authors: Omidreza Sarrafi, Ashraf Kariminik and Mohammad Kazemi Arababadi
    Citation: Virology Journal 2023 20:88
    Content type: Research Published on:

  4. The World Health Organization (WHO) has currently detected five Variants of Concern of SARS-CoV-2 having the WHO labels of ‘Alpha’, ‘Beta’, ‘Gamma’, ‘Delta’ and ‘Omicron’. We aimed to assess and compare the tr...

    Authors: S. S. Manathunga, I. A. Abeyagunawardena and S. D. Dharmaratne
    Citation: Virology Journal 2023 20:59
    Content type: Research Published on:

  5. The aim of this study was to evaluate the performance of ten (10) SARS-CoV-2 serological rapid diagnostic tests in comparison with the WANTAI SARS-CoV-2 Ab ELISA test in a laboratory setting.

    Authors: Henri Gautier Ouedraogo, Abdou Azaque Zoure, Tegwinde Rebeca Compaoré, Herve Ky, Sylvie Zida, Dezemon Zingué, Oumarou Ouedraogo, Serge Théophile Soubeiga, Tani Sagna, Charlemagne Dabiré, Dinanibè Kambiré, Dramane Zongo, Albert Théophane Yonli, Abdoul Rahamani Nikiema, Désiré Nezien, Gnintassa Cyrille Bansé…
    Citation: Virology Journal 2023 20:57
    Content type: Research Published on:

  6. One year after the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic, the focus of attention has shifted to the emergence and spread of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus-2 (SARS-CoV-2) variants of conce...

    Authors: Jean-Robert Makulo, Roger Wumba, Madone Ndona Mandina, Placide Mbala, Adrienne Amuri Aziza, Yannick Mayamba Nlandu, Benjanmin Kabwe, Donatien Mangala, Ben Izizag Bepouka, Jerome Ossam Odio, Murielle Longokolo, Eric Mukenge, Guyguy Kamwiziku, Eddy Lusamaki Kingand, Constantin Bashengezi, Gilbert Kabanda…
    Citation: Virology Journal 2023 20:56
    Content type: Research Published on:

  7. When viruses like SARS-CoV-2 infect cells, they reprogram the repertoire of cellular and viral transcripts that are being translated to optimize their strategy of replication, often targeting host translation ...

    Authors: Nadejda Korneeva, Md Imtiaz Khalil, Ishita Ghosh, Ruping Fan, Thomas Arnold and Arrigo De Benedetti
    Citation: Virology Journal 2023 20:55
    Content type: Research Published on:

  8. Since December 2019, various types of strategies have been applied due to the emergent need to investigate the biology and pathogenesis of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) to discov...

    Authors: Mohadese Hashem Boroojerdi, Tariq Al Jabry, Seyed Mohamad Javad Mirarefin and Halima Albalushi
    Citation: Virology Journal 2023 20:37
    Content type: Review Published on:

  9. Variation of the betacoronavirus SARS-CoV-2 has been the bane of COVID-19 control. Documented variation includes point mutations, deletions, insertions, and recombination among closely or distantly related cor...

    Authors: Roberto Patarca and William A. Haseltine
    Citation: Virology Journal 2023 20:36
    Content type: Research Published on:

  10. Since the onset of the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic, bioinformatic analyses have been performed to understand the nucleotide and synonymous codon usage features and mutational patterns of the virus. However, comparativ...

    Authors: Sarah E. Fumagalli, Nigam H. Padhiar, Douglas Meyer, Upendra Katneni, Haim Bar, Michael DiCuccio, Anton A. Komar and Chava Kimchi-Sarfaty
    Citation: Virology Journal 2023 20:31
    Content type: Research Published on:

  11. The Omicron variant BA.2 was the dominant variant in the COVID-19 outbreak in Shanghai since March 2022. We aim to investigate the characteristics of SARS-CoV-2 Omicron variant infection in pediatric liver-tra...

    Authors: Xin-ye Zhu, Ye-feng Lu, Feng Xue, Yi Luo, Ming-xuan Feng, Bi-jun Qiu, Tao Zhou, Jian-jun Zhu, Jian-jun Zhang, Ping Wan and Qiang Xia
    Citation: Virology Journal 2023 20:28
    Content type: Research Published on:

  12. The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) continues to plague the world. While COVID-19 is asymptomatic in most individuals, it can caus...

    Authors: Yunes Panahi, Armita Mahdavi Gorabi, Sona Talaei, Fatemeh Beiraghdar, Abolfazl Akbarzadeh, Vahideh Tarhriz and Hassan Mellatyar
    Citation: Virology Journal 2023 20:23
    Content type: Review Published on:

  13. The current coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 has affected day-to-day life worldwide and presents an unprecedented challenge to public healt...

    Authors: Ye Minn Htun, Thinzar Aung, Myo Su Kyi, Nyan Htet Shan, Zin Thu Winn, Kaung Si Thu, Nyan Lin Maung, Tun Tun Win and Kyaw Myo Tun
    Citation: Virology Journal 2023 20:3
    Content type: Comment Published on:

  14. Porcine hemagglutinating encephalomyelitis virus (PHEV), a member of the genus Betacoronavirus, is the causative agent of neurological disease in pigs. No effective therapeutics are currently available for PHEV i...

    Authors: Yuzhu Liu, Deguang Song, Xueli Liu, Yuanqi Wang, Gaili Wang and Yungang Lan
    Citation: Virology Journal 2022 19:226
    Content type: Research Published on:

  15. Emergence of new variants mainly variants of concerns (VOC) is caused by mutations in main structural proteins of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). Therefore, we aimed to investigat...

    Authors: Mohammad Abavisani, Karim Rahimian, Bahar Mahdavi, Samaneh Tokhanbigli, Mahsa Mollapour Siasakht, Amin Farhadi, Mansoor Kodori, Mohammadamin Mahmanzar and Zahra Meshkat
    Citation: Virology Journal 2022 19:220
    Content type: Research Published on:

  16. A novel coronavirus, severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), has caused a global pandemic of coronavirus disease 19. Coronaviruses, including SARS-CoV-2, use RNA-dependent RNA polymerase ...

    Authors: Mitsuhiro Machitani, Junko Takei, Mika K. Kaneko, Saori Ueki, Hirofumi Ohashi, Koichi Watashi, Yukinari Kato and Kenkichi Masutomi
    Citation: Virology Journal 2022 19:213
    Content type: Brief Report Published on:

  18. Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2, has led to major public health crises worldwide. Several studies have reported the comprehensive mRNA expression ana...

    Authors: Hiroshi Ito, Masakazu Ishikawa, Hisatake Matsumoto, Fuminori Sugihara, Daisuke Okuzaki, Haruhiko Hirata and Hiroshi Ogura
    Citation: Virology Journal 2022 19:198
    Content type: Research Published on:

  19. Currently, the majority of the global population has been vaccinated with the COVID-19 vaccine, and characterization studies of antibodies in vivo from Omicron breakthrough infection and naive infection popula...

    Authors: Huan Zhang, Yushan Jiang, Hanqing Tan, Lirong Zou, Zhonghua Zheng, Yushi Huang, Shujian Lin, Lebin Su, Jianxiang Yu, Xiaoling Deng, Jianfeng He, Chang Liu, Chenguang Shen and Baisheng Li
    Citation: Virology Journal 2022 19:197
    Content type: Brief Report Published on:

  20. The term, "aerosol-generating procedures” (AGPs), was proposed during the prior SARS-CoV-1 epidemic in order to maximise healthcare worker and patient protection. The concept of AGPs has since expanded to incl...

    Authors: Andrew Silvers, David J. Brewster, Alister Ford, Ana Licina, Cassandra Andrews and Mark Adams
    Citation: Virology Journal 2022 19:189
    Content type: Review Published on:

  21. The severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus-2 (SARS-CoV-2) is the cause of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), which is currently a worldwide pandemic. There are limited available treatments for severe ...

    Authors: Gang Wang, Zebao He, Fengtian Wu, Zhengming Ge, Jiansheng Zhu and Zhi Chen
    Citation: Virology Journal 2022 19:186
    Content type: Research Published on:

  22. Omicron variant (B.1.1.529) is a dominant variant worldwide. However, the risk factors for Omicron variant clearance are yet unknown. The present study aimed to investigate the risk factors for early viral cle...

    Authors: Xiujun Zhang, Guocan Si, Huifen Lu, Wei Zhang, Shuqin Zheng, Zeyu Huang, Longgen Liu, Yuan Xue and Guojun Zheng
    Citation: Virology Journal 2022 19:148
    Content type: Research Published on:

  23. A growing body of evidence reports that agitation and encephalopathy are frequent in critically ill Covid-19 patients. We aimed to assess agitation’s incidence and risk factors in critically ill ARDS patients ...

    Authors: Adel Maamar, Clémence Liard, Willelm Doucet, Florian Reizine, Benoit Painvin, Flora Delamaire, Valentin Coirier, Quentin Quelven, Pauline Guillot, Mathieu Lesouhaitier, Jean Marc Tadié and Arnaud Gacouin
    Citation: Virology Journal 2022 19:145
    Content type: Research Published on:

  24. Rapid and accurate detection of SARS-CoV-2 infection is the cornerstone of prompt patient care. However, the reliability of the antigen rapid diagnostic test (Ag-RDT) in the diagnosis of SARS-CoV-2 infection r...

    Authors: Lan Dong, Wen-Fang Li and Ying Jiang
    Citation: Virology Journal 2022 19:140
    Content type: Research Published on:

  25. Lipids play a central role in the virus life cycle and are a crucial target to develop antiviral therapeutics. Importantly, among the other lipoproteins, the ‘good cholesterol’ high-density lipoprotein (HDL) h...

    Authors: Minu Nain, Apoorv Gupta, Sumit Malhotra and Amit Sharma
    Citation: Virology Journal 2022 19:135
    Content type: Research Published on:

  27. As a new epi-center of COVID-19 in Asia and a densely populated developing country, Indonesia is facing unprecedented challenges in public health. SARS-CoV-2 lineage B.1.466.2 was reported to be an indigenous ...

    Authors: Mingjian Zhu, Qianli Zeng, Bryanna Infinita Laviashna Saputro, Sien Ping Chew, Ian Chew, Holie Frendy, Joanna Weihui Tan and Lanjuan Li
    Citation: Virology Journal 2022 19:103
    Content type: Research Published on:

  29. We report a genomic surveillance of SARS-CoV-2 lineages circulating in Paraná, southern Brazil, from March 2020 to April 2021. Our analysis, based on 333 genomes, revealed that the first variants detected in t...

    Authors: Mauro M. Oliveira, Michelle O. Schemberger, Andreia A. Suzukawa, Irina N. Riediger, Maria do Carmo Debur, Guilherme Becker, Paola Cristina Resende, Tiago Gräf, Eduardo Balsanelli, Valter Antônio de Baura, Emanuel M. de Souza, Fábio O. Pedrosa, Lysangela R. Alves, Lucas Blanes, Sheila Cristina Nardelli, Alessandra M. Aguiar…
    Citation: Virology Journal 2021 18:222
    Content type: Research Published on:

  30. The novel coronavirus SARS-CoV-2 is the etiological agent of COVID-19. This virus has become one of the most dangerous in recent times with a very high rate of transmission. At present, several publications sh...

    Authors: Brian Mondeja, Odalys Valdes, Sonia Resik, Ananayla Vizcaino, Emilio Acosta, Adelmo Montalván, Amira Paez, Mayra Mune, Roberto Rodríguez, Juan Valdés, Guelsys Gonzalez, Daisy Sanchez, Viviana Falcón, Yorexis González, Vivian Kourí, Angelina Díaz…
    Citation: Virology Journal 2021 18:149
    Content type: Short report Published on:

  31. In COVID-19 patients, undetected co-infections may have severe clinical implications associated with increased hospitalization, varied treatment approaches and mortality. Therefore, we investigated the implica...

    Authors: Bandar Alosaimi, Asif Naeem, Maaweya E. Hamed, Haitham S. Alkadi, Thamer Alanazi, Sanaa Saad Al Rehily, Abdullah Z. Almutairi and Adnan Zafar
    Citation: Virology Journal 2021 18:127
    Content type: Research Published on:

  32. Severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus-2 (SARS-CoV-2) has spread to many countries around the world. In addition to lung disease, severe cases also displayed varying degrees of liver injury. This articl...

    Authors: Dongdong Yu, Qingru Du, Shengguang Yan, Xu-Guang Guo, Yehao He, Guodong Zhu, Kewei Zhao and Shi Ouyang
    Citation: Virology Journal 2021 18:121
    Content type: Review Published on:

  33. Since its outbreak in 2019, the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) has become a pandemic, affecting more than 52 million people and causing more than 1 million mortalities globally till date. Current research reve...

    Authors: Baila Shakaib, Tanzeel Zohra, Aamer Ikram, Muhammad Bin Shakaib, Amna Ali, Adnan Bashir, Muhammad Salman, Mumtaz Ali khan and Jamil Ansari
    Citation: Virology Journal 2021 18:120
    Content type: Review Published on:

  34. Rift Valley fever virus (RVFV) is a zoonotic life-threatening viral infection endemic across sub-Saharan African countries and the Arabian Peninsula; however, there is a growing panic of its spread to non-ende...

    Authors: Raymond Tshepiso Makola, Joe Kgaladi, Garland Kgosi More, Petrus Jansen van Vuren, Janusz Tadeusz Paweska and Thabe Moses Matsebatlela
    Citation: Virology Journal 2021 18:116
    Content type: Research Published on:

  35. It is important to recognize the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) patients in severe conditions from moderate ones, thus more effective predictors should be developed.

    Authors: Yingjie Qi, Jian-an Jia, Huiming Li, Nagen Wan, Shuqin Zhang and Xiaoling Ma
    Citation: Virology Journal 2021 18:115
    Content type: Research Published on:

  36. The ongoing SARS-CoV-2 pandemic has spread rapidly worldwide and disease prevention is more important than ever. In the absence of a vaccine, knowledge of the transmission routes and risk areas of infection re...

    Authors: Janina Krambrich, Dario Akaberi, Jiaxin Ling, Tove Hoffman, Lennart Svensson, Marie Hagbom and Åke Lundkvist
    Citation: Virology Journal 2021 18:109
    Content type: Research Published on:

  37. Sensitive, rapid, and accessible diagnostics continue to be critical to track the COVID-19 pandemic caused by the SARS-CoV-2 virus. RT-qPCR is the gold standard test, and comparison of methodologies and reagen...

    Authors: Joel D. Pearson, Daniel Trcka, Suying Lu, Sharon J. Hyduk, Mark Jen, Marie-Ming Aynaud, J. Javier Hernández, Philippos Peidis, Miriam Barrios-Rodiles, Kin Chan, Jim Woodgett, Tony Mazzulli, Liliana Attisano, Laurence Pelletier, Myron I. Cybulsky, Jeffrey L. Wrana…
    Citation: Virology Journal 2021 18:99
    Content type: Research Published on:

  38. The early identification of asymptomatic yet infectious cases is vital to curb the 2019 coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic and to control the disease in the post-pandemic era. In this paper, we propose a fast, in...

    Authors: Eva Kriegova, Regina Fillerova, Milan Raska, Jirina Manakova, Martin Dihel, Ondrej Janca, Pavel Sauer, Martina Klimkova, Petra Strakova and Petr Kvapil
    Citation: Virology Journal 2021 18:95
    Content type: Short report Published on:

  39. SARS-CoV-2 infection can present with a broad clinical differential that includes many other respiratory viruses; therefore, accurate tests are crucial to distinguish true COVID-19 cases from pathogens that do...

    Authors: Natalie C. Marshall, Ruwandi M. Kariyawasam, Nathan Zelyas, Jamil N. Kanji and Mathew A. Diggle
    Citation: Virology Journal 2021 18:93
    Content type: Research Published on:

  40. The emergence and rapid spread of the B.1.1.7 lineage (VOC-202012/01) SARS-CoV-2 variant has aroused global concern. The N501Y substitution is the only mutation in the interface between the RBD of B.1.1.7 and ...

    Authors: Lin Cheng, Shuo Song, Bing Zhou, Xiangyang Ge, Jiazhen Yu, Mingxia Zhang, Bin Ju and Zheng Zhang
    Citation: Virology Journal 2021 18:87
    Content type: Short report Published on:

  41. Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic has been a catastrophic burden to global healthcare systems. The fast spread of the etiologic agent, severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), h...

    Authors: Wai Sing Chan, Chun Hang Au, Ho Yin Lam, Candy Ling Na Wang, Dona Ngar-Yin Ho, Yuk Man Lam, Daniel Ka Wing Chu, Leo Lit Man Poon, Tsun Leung Chan, Jonpaul Sze-Tsing Zee, Edmond Shiu Kwan Ma and Bone Siu Fai Tang
    Citation: Virology Journal 2020 17:183
    Content type: Short report Published on:

  42. Several molecular kits are available for SARS-CoV-2 diagnosis, mostly lacking of proper clinical evaluation due to the emergency caused by COVID19 pandemia, particularly at developing countries like Ecuador.

    Authors: Byron Freire-Paspuel and Miguel Angel Garcia-Bereguiain
    Citation: Virology Journal 2020 17:178
    Content type: Short report Published on:

    The Correction to this article has been published in Virology Journal 2021 18:41

  44. We aimed to describe the features of 220 nonemergency (mild or common type) COVID-19 patients from a shelter hospital, as well as evaluate the efficiency of antiviral drug, Arbidol in their disease progressions.

    Authors: Wei Gao, Si Chen, Kun Wang, Rongzhang Chen, Qian Guo, Jingjing Lu, Xiaodong Wu, Yanan He, Qiaoyun Yan, Shengyun Wang, Feilong Wang, Li Jin, Jing Hua and Qiang Li
    Citation: Virology Journal 2020 17:162
    Content type: Short report Published on:

  45. Aimed to summarize the characteristics of chest CT imaging in Chinese hospitalized patients with Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) to provide reliable evidence for further guiding clinical routine.

    Authors: Haitao Yang, Yuzhu Lan, Xiujuan Yao, Sheng Lin and Baosong Xie
    Citation: Virology Journal 2020 17:159
    Content type: Research Published on:

  46. Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is caused by Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2, previously named 2019-nCov), a novel coronavirus that emerged in China in December 2019 and was dec...

    Authors: Sumanth Khadke, Nayla Ahmed, Nausheen Ahmed, Ryan Ratts, Shine Raju, Molly Gallogly, Marcos de Lima and Muhammad Rizwan Sohail
    Citation: Virology Journal 2020 17:154
    Content type: Review Published on:

  47. The basic reproduction number (R0) is the number of cases directly caused by an infected individual throughout his infectious period. R0 is used to determine the ability of a disease to spread within a given p...

    Authors: Samath Dharmaratne, Supun Sudaraka, Ishanya Abeyagunawardena, Kasun Manchanayake, Mahen Kothalawala and Wasantha Gunathunga
    Citation: Virology Journal 2020 17:144
    Content type: Research Published on:

  48. On 11 March 2020, the World Health Organization (WHO) announced Corona Virus Disease (COVID-19), a disease caused by a pathogen called Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), a pandemic. ...

    Authors: Mulugeta Kiros, Henok Andualem, Teklehaimanot Kiros, Wasihun Hailemichael, Sisay Getu, Alene Geteneh, Derbie Alemu and Woldaregay Erku Abegaz
    Citation: Virology Journal 2020 17:143
    Content type: Review Published on:

  49. The COVID-19 causing coronavirus is an enveloped RNA virus that utilizes an enzyme RNA dependent RNA polymerase for its replication. Favipiravir (FVP) triphosphate, a purine nucleoside analog, inhibits that en...

    Authors: Dhan Bahadur Shrestha, Pravash Budhathoki, Sitaram Khadka, Prajwol Bikram Shah, Nisheem Pokharel and Prama Rashmi
    Citation: Virology Journal 2020 17:141
    Content type: Research Published on:

  50. Sheeppox and goatpox are both economically important animal diseases in which pathogens are goatpox virus (GTPV) and sheeppox virus (SPPV). They can’t cause cross-species infection between sheep and goats in g...

    Authors: Chuanchuan He, Jianjun Tong, Xueping Zhang, Milikaimu Tuohetiniyazi, Yu Zhang and Youwen Li
    Citation: Virology Journal 2020 17:133
    Content type: Research Published on:

    The Correction to this article has been published in Virology Journal 2021 18:108