Experts say carriers may continue to spread Wuhan coronavirus even after recovering, call for immediate development of vaccine
Taiwan News
Date: 2020/02/03
By: Sophia Yang, Taiwan News, Staff Writer
novel coronavirus (2019-nCoV). (AP photo)\
Leading Academia Sinica research fellow Hsieh Shie-liang (謝世良) told UDN that the Wuhan coronavirus has three features: it is an RNA virus that mutates easily, it is more contagious than SARS, and it can spread from an asymptomatic person. This means that even someone who has recovered from the virus can transmit it, making it more difficult to curb its spread.
As a result, Hsieh said it is possible that the virus could stay dormant in the body after recovery and come back to haunt the host in winter or when their immune system is weakened. He said he imagines that the nature of the virus would make it a common infectious, influenza-like illness.
"The novel coronavirus (2019-nCoV) is sparking a larger epidemic than SARS, though it is less deadly," he said, adding that the aforementioned three factors would make the virus "more difficult to deal with and prevent." [FULL STORY]
