title: Antibodies against MERS coronavirus in dromedary camels, United Arab Emirates, 2003 and 2013.
abstract: Middle East respiratory syndrome coronavirus (MERS-CoV) has caused an ongoing outbreak of severe acute respiratory tract infection in humans in the Arabian Peninsula since 2012. Dromedary camels have been implicated as possible viral reservoirs. We used serologic assays to analyze 651 dromedary camel serum samples from the United Arab Emirates; 151 of 651 samples were obtained in 2003, well before onset of the current epidemic, and 500 serum samples were obtained in 2013. Recombinant spike protein-specific immunofluorescence and virus neutralization tests enabled clear discrimination between MERS-CoV and bovine CoV infections. Most (632/651, 97.1%) camels had antibodies against MERS-CoV. This result included all 151 serum samples obtained in 2003. Most (389/651, 59.8%) serum samples had MERS-CoV-neutralizing antibody titers >1,280. Dromedary camels from the United Arab Emirates were infected at high rates with MERS-CoV or a closely related, probably conspecific, virus long before the first human MERS cases.
authors.forename: Benjamin
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Meyer
authors.forename: Marcel A
authors.initials: MA
authors.lastname: Müller
authors.forename: Victor M
authors.initials: VM
authors.lastname: Corman
authors.forename: Chantal B E M
authors.initials: CB
authors.lastname: Reusken
authors.forename: Daniel
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Ritz
authors.forename: Gert-Jan
authors.initials: GJ
authors.lastname: Godeke
authors.forename: Erik
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Lattwein
authors.forename: Stephan
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Kallies
authors.forename: Artem
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Siemens
authors.forename: Janko
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: van Beek
authors.forename: Jan F
authors.initials: JF
authors.lastname: Drexler
authors.forename: Doreen
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Muth
authors.forename: Berend-Jan
authors.initials: BJ
authors.lastname: Bosch
authors.forename: Ulrich
authors.initials: U
authors.lastname: Wernery
authors.forename: Marion P G
authors.initials: MP
authors.lastname: Koopmans
authors.forename: Renate
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Wernery
authors.forename: Christian
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Drosten
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D057134:Antibodies, Neutralizing / Q000276:immunology*; D000914:Antibodies, Viral / Q000276:immunology; D002162:Camelus / Q000276:immunology* / Q000821:virology*; D017934:Coronavirus / Q000276:immunology*; D018352:Coronavirus Infections / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000276:immunology*; D009500:Neutralization Tests / Q000379:methods; D012141:Respiratory Tract Infections / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000276:immunology* / Q000821:virology; D013577:Syndrome; D014479:United Arab Emirates / Q000453:epidemiology
chemical_list: D057134:Antibodies, Neutralizing; D000914:Antibodies, Viral
keywords: MERS; MERS-CoV; Middle East respiratory syndrome; Middle East respiratory syndrome coronavirus; United Arab Emirates; antibodies; camels; coronavirus; dromedary camels; serologic analysis; viruses