Scientists are on the hunt for a shot that will protect against not only SARS-CoV-2, but other members of its family that may emerge in the future.

Meet some of the people featured in the June 2021 issue of The Scientist.

In addition to continued scruitiny of the SARS-CoV-2 virus, research on similar pathogens could aid in the fight against the COVID-19 pandemic and future disease outbreaks.

Patients’ viral loads are highest within five days of their first symptoms, emphasizing the need to isolate early to prevent transmission.

Download our poster of the biggest milestones, from the discovery of the viral family in humans in the 1960s to the identification of SARS-CoV-2.

Milder, cold-causing members of this pathogenic viral family long remained under the radar, although they aren’t entirely harmless.

The host transcriptional signature elicited by the coronavirus appears to be less robust and lacks the induction of key antiviral genes.

The symptoms suggest SARS-CoV-2 might infect neurons, raising questions about whether there could be effects on the brain that play a role in patients’ deaths, but the data are preliminary.

Emerging data as well as knowledge from the SARS and MERS coronavirus outbreaks yield some clues as to why SARS-CoV-2 affects some people worse than others.

Under careful watch of the World Health Organization, doctors will test a range of COVID-19 therapies, including HIV and flu antivirals, blood plasma infusions, and traditional Chinese medicines.

The National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases releases a series of images that offer a close up look at the novel coronavirus SARS-CoV-2.

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

Health authorities have ruled out the usual suspects, leading to fears that a novel virus is causing the infections in Hubei Province.

Understanding the patterns of diversity in bat-hosted viruses may help researchers better predict when and where outbreaks may occur.

Researchers are searching for ways to prevent the coronavirus from attaching to DPP-4 receptors, blocking it from invading and replicating within host cells.

Researchers report evidence of past Middle East respiratory syndrome coronavirus infection in two people in the country.

Scientists conduct the first MERS-CoV vaccine trials in camels and provide viral lineage evidence of camel-to-human transfer.

The creation of a chimeric SARS-like virus has scientists discussing the risks of gain-of-function research.

The experimental vaccine protects monkeys against the coronavirus that causes Middle East respiratory syndrome and elicits an immune response in camels.