New Coronavirus Identified in Central China Pneumonia Outbreak

The virus, which has sickened at least 59 people, does not appear to transmit easily between humans.

| 2 min read
an illustration of cononaviruses

Register for free to listen to this article
Listen with Speechify
0:00
2:00
Share

ABOVE: © ISTOCK.COM, XRENDER

A mysterious new type of pneumonia linked to a seafood market in Wuhan, China, is caused by a novel coronavirus, Chinese state media reported today (January 9). The reports come a day after the World Health Organization (WHO) stated that multiple known viruses had been ruled out as a cause of the outbreak, and that a coronavirus was the likely cause. The virus had sickened at least 59 people in China as of Sunday, and according to the Associated Press, one suspected case—a woman who fell ill after returning from China—has been identified in South Korea.

Xinhua reports that the virus was identified by the Chinese Academy of Engineering’s Xu Jianguo based on tests of samples from 15 patients with the illness. Known coronaviruses include some that cause a cold, as well as the pathogens behind severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS) and Middle East respiratory syndrome ...

Interested in reading more?

Become a Member of

The Scientist Logo
Receive full access to more than 35 years of archives, as well as TS Digest, digital editions of The Scientist, feature stories, and much more!
Already a member? Login Here

Keywords

Meet the Author

  • Shawna Williams

    Shawna was an editor at The Scientist from 2017 through 2022. She holds a bachelor's degree in biochemistry from Colorado College and a graduate certificate and science communication from the University of California, Santa Cruz.
Share
May digest 2025 cover
May 2025, Issue 1

Study Confirms Safety of Genetically Modified T Cells

A long-term study of nearly 800 patients demonstrated a strong safety profile for T cells engineered with viral vectors.

View this Issue
iStock

TaqMan Probe & Assays: Unveil What's Possible Together

Thermo Fisher Logo
Meet Aunty and Tackle Protein Stability Questions in Research and Development

Meet Aunty and Tackle Protein Stability Questions in Research and Development

Unchained Labs
Detecting Residual Cell Line-Derived DNA with Droplet Digital PCR

Detecting Residual Cell Line-Derived DNA with Droplet Digital PCR

Bio-Rad
How technology makes PCR instruments easier to use.

Making Real-Time PCR More Straightforward

Thermo Fisher Logo

Products

The Scientist Placeholder Image

Biotium Launches New Phalloidin Conjugates with Extended F-actin Staining Stability for Greater Imaging Flexibility

Leica Microsystems Logo

Latest AI software simplifies image analysis and speeds up insights for scientists

BioSkryb Genomics Logo

BioSkryb Genomics and Tecan introduce a single-cell multiomics workflow for sequencing-ready libraries in under ten hours

iStock

Agilent BioTek Cytation C10 Confocal Imaging Reader

agilent technologies logo