Infectious disease, when turned into an epidemic, has the ability to kill a large number of people in a very small duration.  In the past decade, Ebola and Zika virus has already given us the scare and to add to the list, is a new disease that can likely cause an epidemic. Just in case you are unfamiliar with the novel coronavirus, let us tell you that the deadly virus has already infected people in Beijing and Shenzhen, outside the Wuhan district of China.  So far, there haven’t been any clear cases of one human infecting another with the novel coronavirus. So what is exactly is causing the disease to spread? We give you a breakdown of everything that the scientists have decoded about the new deadly virus so far.

What Causes Coronavirus?

According to health authorities, the respiratory illness does not seem to be caused by known pathogens such as SARS and MERS. Soon, the origin of the outbreak was traced to the Huanan Seafood Market in China, giving a hint that the virus may have zoonotic origins. Coronavirus is a large family of viruses that is said to infect both humans and animals alike. Scientist preliminarily determined a new strain of coronavirus that maybe the culprit of the outbreak. Third Death from Coronavirus in China, 140 New Cases

What Symptoms Does the Mysterious Disease Exhibit?

The first cases of the mysterious condition exhibited symptoms like fever, shortness of breath and lung infections. In more severe cases, the infection can cause the acute respiratory syndrome, pneumonia, kidney failure and even death. Wuhan Pneumonia Outbreak: China Reports First Death From Mystery SARS-Like Disease

What Makes Indians More Susceptible To the Virus?

All countries are susceptible to the new virus as the population does not have any immunity for them. But it seems like in India, we are not well-equipped to identify the disease-carrying individuals at the ports of our country. Plus, coronavirus exhibits symptoms similar to cold, cough and other respiratory diseases, making it even more difficult to single out people suffering from the condition. Facts, Causes, Symptoms, Treatment And Prevention of The Deadly Infection

That being said, Indians do not have imports from the seafood market in China, which makes the infection less likely to spread in India. But again, human-to-human transmission of the disease is yet to be ascertained, so travelling to the affected area may not be a great idea. The virus can thrive in any overpopulated country because of the close proximity of the people. In a country like ours where masses have poor immunity and are malnourished, we can be badly affected by the new virus.

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Jan 23, 2020 06:43 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).