MERS Found In Camels, Raising Suspicion As Animal Reservoir

“Scientists have found cases of Middle East respiratory syndrome (MERS) in camels in Qatar, health officials said on Thursday, fueling speculation that camels might be the animal reservoir that allowed the virus to infect and kill humans,” Reuters reports. A statement from Qatar’s Supreme Council of Health said the virus was found in three camels among a herd of 14 and two human cases of the disease linked to the barn had since recovered, the news agency notes (Bakr/Kelland, 11/28). “It was the second reported case of animals infected with MERS after Saudi Arabia announced a camel had tested positive for the virus [earlier in November],” Agence France-Presse adds (11/28). “Two new cases of the potentially deadly MERS respiratory virus … have been reported in the United Arab Emirates, media Friday cited health authorities as saying,” AFP reports in a separate article (11/28).

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