Saudi Hospital Head Fired After MERS Infected Several HCWs; New Death, Research Reported

News outlets continue to cover issues surrounding the Middle East Respiratory Syndrome (MERS) outbreak.

Agence France-Presse: Saudi hospital head sacked over MERS panic
“Saudi Arabia’s acting health minister has announced the sacking of the head of a Jeddah hospital where a spike in MERS infections among medical staff sparked panic among the public…” (5/7).

Agence France-Presse: Jordanian dies of MERS virus
“A man has died in Jordan after being infected with the MERS virus, a media report said Tuesday, in the kingdom’s second fatality from the disease this year and fourth since 2012…” (5/7).

HealthDay News: MERS Can Be Transmitted From Camel to Human, Study Confirms
“New research has confirmed that camels can transmit the deadly MERS virus to people. Virologists at the University of Veterinary Medicine in Vienna, Austria, found that the Middle East Respiratory Syndrome viruses in camels and people in the same geographical region are almost genetically identical, according to the study…” (Preidt, 5/6).

ScienceInsider: MERS: A Virologist’s View From Saudi Arabia
ScienceInsider interviews Christian Drosten, “a virologist at the University of Bonn in Germany, [who] is among those leading the effort to understand Middle East Respiratory Syndrome (MERS) and [working to] contain the disease…” (5/6).

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