COVID-19 is the infectious disease pandemic caused by the most recently discovered coronavirus that has affected many countries globally. Coronaviruses are a large family of RNA viruses that have been shown to cause illness in humans and animals (e.g., camels, bats, and cats).
In humans, there are several coronaviruses known to cause respiratory infections that can range from the common cold with generally mild upper-respiratory tract illnesses to more severe diseases such as Middle East Respiratory Syndrome (MERS-CoV) and Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS-CoV).
SARS-CoV-2 is the name of the novel coronavirus that causes the disease COVID-19. COVID-19 is an abbreviation for “Coronavirus Disease 2019.”
