Frontiers in Medicine (Jul 2021)

Original Hosts, Clinical Features, Transmission Routes, and Vaccine Development for Coronavirus Disease (COVID-19)

  • Ting Wu,
  • Ting Wu,
  • Ting Wu,
  • Shuntong Kang,
  • Shuntong Kang,
  • Shuntong Kang,
  • Wenyao Peng,
  • Wenyao Peng,
  • Chenzhe Zuo,
  • Chenzhe Zuo,
  • Yuhao Zhu,
  • Yuhao Zhu,
  • Liangyu Pan,
  • Keyun Fu,
  • Keyun Fu,
  • Yaxian You,
  • Xinyuan Yang,
  • Xinyuan Yang,
  • Xuan Luo,
  • Xuan Luo,
  • Liping Jiang,
  • Meichun Deng,
  • Meichun Deng,
  • Meichun Deng

DOI
https://doi.org/10.3389/fmed.2021.702066
Journal volume & issue
Vol. 8

Abstract

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The pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), which is caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), has led to public concern worldwide. Although a variety of hypotheses about the hosts of SARS-CoV-2 have been proposed, an exact conclusion has not yet been reached. Initial clinical manifestations associated with COVID-19 are similar to those of other acute respiratory infections, leading to misdiagnoses and resulting in the outbreak at the early stage. SARS-CoV-2 is predominantly spread by droplet transmission and close contact; the possibilities of fecal–oral, vertical, and aerosol transmission have not yet been fully confirmed or rejected. Besides, COVID-19 cases have been reported within communities, households, and nosocomial settings through contact with confirmed COVID-19 patients or asymptomatic individuals. Environmental contamination is also a major driver for the COVID-19 pandemic. Considering the absence of specific treatment for COVID-19, it is urgent to decrease the risk of transmission and take preventive measures to control the spread of the virus. In this review, we summarize the latest available data on the potential hosts, entry receptors, clinical features, and risk factors of COVID-19 and transmission routes of SARS-CoV-2, and we present the data about development of vaccines.

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