Background:The ongoing outbreak of the recently emerged novel coronavirus (2019-nCoV) poses a challenge for public health laboratories as virus isolates are unavailable while there is growing evidence that the outbreak is more widespread than initially thought, and international spread through travellers does already occur. Aim: We aimed to develop and deploy robust diagnostic methodology for use in public health laboratory settings without having virus material available. Methods: Here we present a validated diagnostic workflow for 2019-nCoV, its design relying on close genetic relatedness of 2019-nCoV with SARS coronavirus, making use of synthetic nucleic acid technology. Results: The workflow reliably detects 2019-nCoV, and further discriminates 2019-nCoV from SARS-CoV. Through coordination between academic and public laboratories, we confirmed assay exclusivity based on 297 original clinical specimens containing a full spectrum of human respiratory viruses. Control material is made available through European Virus Archive -Global (EVAg), a European Union infrastructure project. Conclusion: The present study demonstrates the enormous response capacity achieved through coordination of academic and public laboratories in national and European research networks.

The present outbreak of a coronavirus-associated acute respiratory disease called coronavirus disease 19 (COVID-19) is the third documented spillover of an animal coronavirus to humans in only two decades that has resulted in a major epidemic. The Coronaviridae Study Group (CSG) of the International Committee on Taxonomy of Viruses, which is responsible for developing the classification of viruses and taxon nomenclature of the family Coronaviridae, has assessed the placement of the human pathogen, tentatively named 2019-nCoV, within the Coronaviridae. Based on phylogeny, taxonomy and established practice, the CSG recognizes this virus as forming a sister clade to the prototype human and bat severe acute respiratory syndrome corona- viruses (SARS-CoVs) of the species Severe acute respiratory syndrome-related coronavirus, and designates it as SARS-CoV-2. In order to facilitate communication, the CSG proposes to use the following naming convention for individual isolates: SARS-CoV-2/host/location/isolate/date. While the full spectrum of clinical manifestations associated with SARS-CoV-2 infections in humans remains to be determined, the independent zoonotic transmission of SARS-CoV and SARS-CoV-2 highlights the need for studying viruses at the species level to complement research focused on individual pathogenic viruses of immediatesignificance. This will improve our understanding of virus-host interactions in an ever-changing environment and enhance our preparedness for future outbreaks.

Most human coronaviruses cause mild upper respiratory tract disease but may be associated with more severe pulmonary disease in immunocompromised individuals. However, SARS coronavirus caused severe lower respiratory disease with nearly 10% mortality and evidence of systemic spread. Recently, another coronavirus (human coronavirus-Erasmus Medical Center (hCoV-EMC)) was identified in patients with severe and sometimes lethal lower respiratory tract infection. Viral genome analysis revealed close relatedness to coronaviruses found in bats. Here we identify dipeptidyl peptidase 4 (DPP4; also known as CD26) as a functional receptor for hCoV-EMC. DPP4 specifically co-purified with the receptor-binding S1 domain of the hCoV-EMC spike protein from lysates of susceptible Huh-7 cells. Antibodies directed against DPP4 inhibited hCoV-EMC infection of primary human bronchial epithelial cells and Huh-7 cells. Expression of human and bat (Pipistrellus pipistrellus) DPP4 in non-susceptible COS-7 cells enabled infection by hCoV-EMC. The use of the evolutionarily conserved DPP4 protein from different species as a functional receptor provides clues about the host range potential of hCoV-EMC. In addition, it will contribute critically to our understanding of the pathogenesis and epidemiology of this emerging human coronavirus, and may facilitate the development of intervention strategies.

a new coronavirus emerged in China and caused an acute respiratory disease now known as coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) (1). The virus was identified to be a betacoronavirus related to severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus (SARS-CoV) and thus was named SARS-CoV-2 (2). In <2 decades, this virus is the third known coronavirus to cross the species barrier and cause severe respiratory infections in humans after SARS-CoV in 2003 and Middle East respiratory syndrome coronavirus (MERS-CoV) in 2012, yet with unprecedented spread compared with the earlier 2 viruses.Because of the rapid increase in number of cases and uncontrolled and vast spread worldwide, the World Health Organization has declared SARS-CoV-2 a pandemic. As of March 14, 2020, the virus had infected >130,000 persons in 122 countries, 3.7% of whom had died. (3). Rapid identification of the etiology and sharing of the genetic sequence of the virus, followed by international collaborative efforts initiated because of emergence of SARS-CoV-2, has led to rapid availability of real-time PCR diagnostic assays that support case ascertainment and tracking of the outbreak (4). Availability of these assays has helped in patient detection and efforts to contain the virus. However, validated serologic assays are still lacking and are urgently needed.Validated serologic assays are crucial for patient contact tracing, identifying the viral reservoir hosts, and epidemiologic studies. Epidemiologic studies are urgently needed to help uncover the burden of disease, in particular the rate of asymptomatic infections, and to get better estimates on illness and death. In ad-