Alliance for Pandemic Preparedness

February 12, 2020

Diarrhea may be underestimated: a missing link in 2019 novel coronavirus

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  • A gastrointestinal route of infection is proposed by Liang, et al., based on ACE2 [host cell receptor] mRNA expression in healthy human small intestines and other molecular evidence for biologic plausibility. 
  • It is hypothesized that eating 2019-nCoV-infected wild animals could result in human infection; and diarrhea as a 2019-nCoV symptom could both indicate a GI route of transmission and be risk for on-going transmission.

Liang W, et al (Feb 11, 2020) Diarrhea may be underestimated: a missing link in 2019 novel coronavirus. Pre-print accessed Feb 12 from https://www.medrxiv.org/content/10.1101/2020.02.03.20020289v1