Prevalence of Middle East Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus in Dromedary Camels, Tunisia

Simone Eckstein; Rosina Ehmann; Abderraouf Gritli; Houcine Ben Yahia; Manuel Diehl; Roman Wölfel; Mohamed Ben Rhaiem; Kilian Stoecker; Susann Handrick; Mohamed Ben Moussa

doi:10.3201/eid2707.204873

Prevalence of Middle East Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus in Dromedary Camels, Tunisia

Emerg Infect Dis. 2021 Jul;27(7):1964-1968. doi: 10.3201/eid2707.204873.

Authors

Simone Eckstein, Rosina Ehmann, Abderraouf Gritli, Houcine Ben Yahia, Manuel Diehl, Roman Wölfel, Mohamed Ben Rhaiem, Kilian Stoecker, Susann Handrick, Mohamed Ben Moussa

Abstract

Free-roaming camels, especially those crossing national borders, pose a high risk for spreading Middle East respiratory syndrome coronavirus (MERS-CoV). To prevent outbreaks, active surveillance is necessary. We found that a high percentage of dromedaries in Tunisia are MERS-CoV seropositive (80.4%) or actively infected (19.8%), indicating extensive MERS-CoV circulation in Northern Africa.

Keywords: Camelus dromedarius; MERS-CoV; Middle East respiratory coronavirus; North Africa; Tunisia; dromedary camels; phylogenetic analyses; respiratory infections; seroprevalence; viruses; zoonoses.

Publication types

Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

Animals
Camelus
Coronavirus Infections* / epidemiology
Coronavirus Infections* / veterinary
Middle East Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus*
Prevalence
Tunisia / epidemiology
Zoonoses