Everything you need to know about coronavirus, the deadly illness alarming the world (Ⅲ)

威慑全球的致命冠状病毒，你所需要了解的一切（三）

Is there a vaccine⁽¹⁾ for the coronavirus?

There are no drugs or vaccines for coronaviruses yet, including 2019-nCov. Doctors can only treat the symptoms they cause.

However, scientists at The Peter Doherty Institute for Infection and Immunity⁽²⁾ in Melbourne, Australia, say they were able to successfully grow the novel coronavirus in cell culture outside of China for the first time ever.

Dr. Mike Catton, deputy⁽³⁾ director of the Doherty Institute, said in a statement the breakthrough provides crucial information “to assist in the assessment of effectiveness of trial⁽⁴⁾ vaccines.”

According to the South China Morning Post, China might already have a vaccine developed but needs more time to test it. Hong Kong University professor Yuen Kwok-yung told the paper it will take months to test the vaccine on animals and at least another year to conduct clinical trials on humans.

How contagious is the coronavirus?

A virus can linger⁽⁵⁾ in the air and infect people for two hours after an infected person leaves the room. 

Who is most at risk of getting coronavirus?

Chinese scientists have decoded the 2019-nCoV DNA and made it public. Researchers are analyzing the data in hope of finding a vaccine.

Hooper said that experts are still learning about the virus and information remains limited.

However, he points to elderly and people who are sick with other conditions as a demographic⁽⁶⁾ who are over-represented in the coronavirus death toll.

“For those who do have the disease, it seems like the elderly and people with comorbid⁽⁷⁾ conditions are more likely to have serious illness,” he said.

Hooper said it's unknown if women infected with the virus can have complications while pregnant, like the Zika virus, which causes microcephaly⁽⁸⁾ and other fetal⁽⁹⁾ brain defects.

How can you prevent catching the coronavirus?

As there's no available vaccine, the CDC recommends taking preventative measures to decrease the likelihood of infection:

Wear a respirator⁽¹⁰⁾. N95 or higher respirators prevent exposure to small airborne  particles⁽¹¹⁾ and biological aerosols⁽¹²⁾ including viruses and bacteria.

Wash your hands. Frequently wash your hands and avoid touching your face.

Avoid large crowds. Being in crowds increases risk of catching a virus.

How do doctors treat the coronavirus?

There’s no specific treatment for illnesses caused by human coronaviruses but the CDC recommends taking pain and fever medications, drinking plenty of liquids and staying home to rest.

Notes

(1) vaccine：疫苗

(2) the Peter Doherty Institute for Infection and Immunity：彼得·多尔蒂感染和免疫研究所

(3) deputy：副的，代理的

(4) trial：试验的

(5) linger：持续存留

(6) demographic：特定人群

(7) comorbid：并发的，共患的

(8) microcephaly：小头畸形症

(9) fetal：胎儿的

(10) respirator：口罩，医用口罩

(11) airborne particle：悬浮粒子，空气中的小颗粒

(12) aerosol：气溶胶