Does SARS‐CoV‐2 has a longer incubation period than SARS and MERS?. Issue 5 (24th February 2020)

• Record Type: Journal Article
• Authors: Jiang, Xuan; Rayner, Simon; Luo, Min‐Hua
• Other Names: Luo Guangxiang (George) guestEditor.; Gao Shou‐Jiang guestEditor.
• Is Part Of: Journal of medical virology. Volume 92:Issue 5(2020)
• Page Start: 476
• Page End: 478
• Publication Date: 2020-02-24
• Subjects: coronavirus -- incubation -- local infection/replication/spread -- pandemic -- virulence; Virology -- Periodicals; 616
• DOI: 10.1002/jmv.25708
• Languages: English
• ISSNs: 0146-6615

Abstract

Abstract: The outbreak of a novel coronavirus (SARS‐CoV‐2) since December 2019 in Wuhan, the major transportation hub in central China, became an emergency of major international concern. While several etiological studies have begun to reveal the specific biological features of this virus, the epidemic characteristics need to be elucidated. Notably, a long incubation time was reported to be associated with SARS‐CoV‐2 infection, leading to adjustments in screening and control policies. To avoid the risk of virus spread, all potentially exposed subjects are required to be isolated for 14 days, which is the longest predicted incubation time. However, based on our analysis of a larger dataset available so far, we find there is no observable difference between the incubation time for SARS‐CoV‐2, severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus (SARS‐CoV), and middle east respiratory syndrome coronavirus (MERS‐CoV), highlighting the need for larger and well‐annotated datasets. Highlights: It is unclear whether there are statistically significant differences in incubation times amongst SARS‐CoV‐2, SARS‐CoV and MERS‐CoV. However, this is because: 1) Limited available data challenges investigation of the current coronavirus outbreak. 2) Lack of annotation also makes it difficult to identify and consolidate the datasets. Thus, care should be taken when selecting datasets for comparative analysis with other viruses or outbreaks.