Therapeutic Considerations for Middle East Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus

Abstract

Middle East Respiratory Syndrome (MERS) is a severe respiratory illness first reported in Saudi Arabia that is caused by a coronavirus called MERS-CoV. This virus causes substantial fever, cough, and shortness of breath, and approximately half of the people afflicted have died. The MERS-CoV cases have occurred in or near the Arabian Peninsula, and to date no cases have been identified in the U.S. It is believed MERS-CoV is transmitted from ill people via contact and/or droplet; however, the virus has shown restricted transmission in communities. Recently, dipeptidyl peptidase-4 (DPP4) has been identified as a receptor for MERS-CoV. DPP4 is highly conserved across species and expressed by human bronchial epithelia, thus development of DPP4 inhibitors and those that target the virus-host interface may provide therapeutic opportunities to control MERS-CoV infection and disease.