Publications

the genetic identification of camel contagious ecthyma virus as the causative agent of contagious ecthyma in dromedary camels (camelus dromedarius) in qatar.	camel contagious ecthyma is a contagious viral disease of camels caused by either orf virus (orfv) or camel contagious ecthyma virus (ccev). it has been previously reported and shown to cause economic losses in some camel-rearing countries in asia and africa, but has not been detected in qatar. the purpose of this study was to identify and genetically characterize the contagious ecthyma causative agent in qatari dromedary camels between 2017 and 2018. accordingly, we made diagnoses of camel cont ...	2021	34008092
middle east respiratory syndrome coronavirus infection profile in qatar: an 8-year experience.	the middle east respiratory syndrome coronavirus (mers-cov) emerged in 2012. the objective of the study was to describe the epidemiology, risk factors, clinical characteristics, and outcome of mers-cov in qatar. a total of 28 cases of mers-cov were identified, corresponding to an incidence of 1.7 per 1,000,000 population. most patients had a history of contact with camels 15, travel to kingdom of saudi arabia 7 or known contact with individuals with confirmed mers-cov infection 7. majority of pa ...	2021	34026547
innate and adaptive immune genes associated with mers-cov infection in dromedaries.	the recent sars-cov-2 pandemic has refocused attention to the betacoronaviruses, only eight years after the emergence of another zoonotic betacoronavirus, the middle east respiratory syndrome coronavirus (mers-cov). while the wild source of sars-cov-2 may be disputed, for mers-cov, dromedaries are considered as source of zoonotic human infections. testing 100 immune-response genes in 121 dromedaries from united arab emirates (uae) for potential association with present mers-cov infection, we ide ...	2021	34070971
nanobodies from camelid mice and llamas neutralize sars-cov-2 variants.	since the start of the covid-19 pandemic, sars-cov-2 has caused millions of deaths worldwide. although a number of vaccines have been deployed, the continual evolution of the receptor-binding domain (rbd) of the virus has challenged their efficacy. in particular, the emerging variants b.1.1.7, b.1.351 and p.1 (first detected in the uk, south africa and brazil, respectively) have compromised the efficacy of sera from patients who have recovered from covid-19 and immunotherapies that have received ...	2021	34098567
phenotypic and genetic characterization of mers coronaviruses from africa to understand their zoonotic potential.	coronaviruses are pathogens of pandemic potential. middle east respiratory syndrome coronavirus (mers-cov) causes a zoonotic respiratory disease of global public health concern, and dromedary camels are the only proven source of zoonotic infection. more than 70% of mers-cov-infected dromedaries are found in east, north, and west africa, but zoonotic mers disease is only reported from the arabian peninsula. we compared viral replication competence of clade a and b viruses from the arabian peninsu ...	2021	34099577
middle east respiratory syndrome (mers) virus-pathophysiological axis and the current treatment strategies.	middle east respiratory syndrome (mers) is a lethal respiratory disease with its first case reported back in 2012 (jeddah, saudi arabia). it is a novel, single-stranded, positive-sense rna beta coronavirus (mers-cov) that was isolated from a patient who died from a severe respiratory illness. later, it was found that this patient was infected with mers. mers is endemic to countries in the middle east regions, such as saudi arabia, jordan, qatar, oman, kuwait and the united arab emirates. it has ...	2021	34105037
nonlinear dynamics for the spread of pathogenesis of covid-19 pandemic.	coronaviruses did not invite attention at a global level and responsiveness until the series of 2003-sars contagion followed by year-2012 mers plus, most recently, 2019-ncov eruptions. sars-cov &mers-cov are painstaking, extremely pathogenic. also, very evidently, both have been communicated from bats to palm-civets & dromedary camels and further transferred ultimately to humans. no country has been deprived of this viral genomic contamination wherever populaces reside and are interconnected. th ...	2021	34118731
seroprevalence of bovine viral diarrhea virus in local borana cattle breed and camels (camelus dromedarius) in ethiopia.	bovine viral diarrhea, caused by bovine viral diarrhea virus (bvdv), has been considered a disease of cattle but is now emerging in camels. in ethiopia it has been detected in exotic and cross-bred dairy cattle but no information is available on its occurrence in indigenous cattle breeds and camels. this study was, therefore, conducted to estimate the prevalence of bvdv infection in indigenous borana cattle and camels (camelus dromedarius) in moyale and miesso pastoral districts.	2021	34136370
prevalence of middle east respiratory syndrome coronavirus in dromedary camels, tunisia.	free-roaming camels, especially those crossing national borders, pose a high risk for spreading middle east respiratory syndrome coronavirus (mers-cov). to prevent outbreaks, active surveillance is necessary. we found that a high percentage of dromedaries in tunisia are mers-cov seropositive (80.4%) or actively infected (19.8%), indicating extensive mers-cov circulation in northern africa.	2021	34152977
severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus (sars-cov-1) and middle east respiratory syndrome coronavirus (mers-cov) infections in pregnancy - an overview.	severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus (sars-cov-1) and middle east respiratory syndrome coronavirus (mers-cov) infections, like most other viruses that affect the respiratory tract can cause severe maternal illness and adverse pregnancy outcomes. they are not only highly transmissible (acquired through droplets), but host reservoirs such as dromedary camels for mers-cov and masked palm civet for sars-cov-1 are critical links in the onset of outbreaks. clinically they present with flu-lik ...	2021	34218204
viral rna metagenomics of hyalomma ticks collected from dromedary camels in makkah province, saudi arabia.	arthropod-borne infections are a medical and economic threat to humans and livestock. over the last three decades, several unprecedented viral outbreaks have been recorded in the western part of the arabian peninsula. however, little is known about the circulation and diversity of arthropod-borne viruses in this region. to prepare for new outbreaks of vector-borne diseases, it is important to detect which viruses circulate in each vector population. in this study, we used a metagenomics approach ...	2021	34372602