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Coronavirus reaches the US: Everything we know about the deadly virus

A virus that has infected over 400 people and caused nine deaths has reached the US. Here's everything we know about the mysterious new disease.

A never-before-seen virus, detected in the central Chinese city of Wuhan, has claimed six lives and infected dozens of Chinese citizens with a pneumonia-like illness, according to the Wuhan Municipal Health Commission. It was first reported to the World Health Organization on Dec. 31, 2019 and has been under investigation since. WHO indicates there are still many unknowns, but Chinese scientists have linked the disease to a family of viruses known as "coronaviruses," the same family as the deadly SARS and MERS viruses.

Scientists are yet to fully understand how destructive the new virus, dubbed 2019-nCoV, might be. Researchers and investigators are just beginning to understand where it originated, how it is transmitted, how far it has spread and what symptoms patients present with.

As of Jan. 21, case numbers have skyrocketed to over 440 in China and abroad. Chinese authorities also confirmed health workers have been infected with virus, suggesting it has achieved human-to-human transmission. As a result, authorities are taking steps to guard against its spread and the WHO will convene an Emergency Committee to explore whether the virus constitutes a public health emergency on Wednesday, Jan. 22. Researchers believe the number of cases may be higher than current reports suggest, and three US airports have begun to screen incoming passengers for signs of illness, as have busy airports in Hong Kong, Singapore, South Korea and Malaysia.

Here's everything we know about the mystery virus and steps you can take to reduce your risk of coronavirus 

What is a coronavirus?

Coronaviruses belong to a family of viruses known as Coronaviridae and look like spiked rings under an electron microscope. They are so named because of these spikes, which form a halo around their viral envelope.

Coronaviruses contain a strand of RNA within their envelope and cannot reproduce without getting inside living cells and hijacking the machinery found within. The spikes on their viral envelope help them bind to cells, which gives them a way in. It's like blasting the door open with C4. Once inside they turn the cell into a virus factory, using its molecular conveyor belt to produce more viruses which are then shipped out. The virus progeny infect another cell and the cycle starts anew.

Typically, these types of viruses are found in animals ranging from livestock to household pets and wildlife such as bats. When they make the jump to humans they can cause fever, respiratory illness and inflammation in the lungs. In immunocompromised individuals, such as the elderly or those with HIV-AIDS, they can cause severe respiratory illness.

The causative agent of severe acute respiratory syndrome and Middle East respiratory syndrome were extremely pathogenic coronaviruses, and were found to be easily transmitted from human to human. SARS infected more than 8,000 people and resulted in nearly 800 deaths, MERS almost 2,500 with over 850 deaths.

Where did the virus come from?

The virus appears to have originated in the Huanan Seafood Wholesale Market in Wuhan, a Chinese city of over 11 million people approximately 650 miles south of Beijing. The market sells fish, as well as a panoply of other animal meats. However, it's still unknown whether it emerged from an animal species like previous coronaviruses, SARS and MERS.

Markets have been implicated in the origin and spread of viral diseases in past epidemics and a large majority of the confirmed cases seen so far had been to the Huanan Seafood marketplace in recent weeks. The market seems like an integral piece of the puzzle, but researchers will need to undertake a range of experiments and testing to confirm the virus' origin.

"Testing of animals in the Wuhan area, including sampling from the markets, will provide more information," said Raina MacIntyre, a head of the biosecurity research program at the University of New South Wales' Kirby Institute.

How many confirmed cases have been reported?

Four hundred forty cases have been confirmed as of Jan. 22. The bulk are in China, but cases have been confirmed in Thailand, Japan, South Korea and now the US, where a man in his 30s in Washington state presented with the disease at a local hospital.

A list of confirmed cases and their locations are below:

• China: 440 confirmed cases
• Thailand: 2 confirmed cases
• Japan: 1 confirmed cases
• South Korea: 1 confirmed case
• US: 1 confirmed case
• Australia: 1 suspected case

National authorities in China continue to monitor over 1,300 residents who attended the Wuhan market or have had prolonged contact with those presenting symptoms of the novel disease.

China's National Health Commission said the virus is responsible for nine deaths as of Jan. 22. The first death was a 61-year-old man who had frequented the Wuhan market and had chronic liver disease and abdominal tumors. The second was a 69-year-old man who went to a hospital with severe damage to multiple organs. 

A study, published by the Imperial College London on Jan. 17, estimates the total number of 2019-nCoV cases could be much higher than reported, with over 1,700 cases. The work, led by Neil Ferguson, calculated how far the virus is likely to spread based on its incubation period and the amount of travel in and out of Wuhan since it was first detected.

WHO's full situation report was last updated on Jan. 21 but only includes data up to Jan. 20.

How do we know it's a new coronavirus?

In short, genes. 

Chinese scientists were able to isolate and unravel the genetic code of the virus from patients, ruling out other potential causes such as influenza, and confirm it is completely new. However the genetic code shows this virus has around 70% similarity to the SARS coronavirus. 

Understanding the genetic code also helps researchers in two ways: It allows them to create tests that can identify the virus from patient samples and gives them potential insight into creating treatments or vaccines.

How does the coronavirus spread?

This is one of the major questions researchers are working feverishly to answer. It's unclear what animals may act as a reservoir for the virus and how much of a role the live animal markets play in its spread. There haven't been reports of health officials and attendants contracting the disease, which seems to suggest human-to-human transmission is limited -- but this is still being investigated.

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