Dublin coronavirus Mania - small businesses closed 78 suspected cases of coronavirus tested in Ireland Darragh Bermingham SEVENTY-eight people suspected of having the coronavirus have been tested in Ireland in recent weeks, the Department of Health has revealed. All test results returned negative but leading doctors and health workers have warned that it is only a matter of time before Ireland experiences its first confirmed case of the novel coronavirus, which has been officially named Covid-19. The Echo understands that at least one person has undergone tests for the illness at Cork University Hospital in recent weeks.
The latest national figures come after it was revealed on Tuesday that two Irish passengers who were on board the Princess Diamond cruise ship have been diagnosed with the #coronavirusdubin . A coronavirus is one of many viruses that cause diseases in mammals and birds. In humans, coronaviruses cause respiratory tract infections that are typically mild, such as the common cold, though rarer forms such as SARS, MERS and COVID-19 can be lethal. Symptoms vary in other species: in chickens, they cause an upper respiratory tract disease, while in cows and pigs they cause diarrhea. There are no vaccines or antiviral drugs to prevent or treat human coronavirus infections. Coronaviruses comprise the subfamily #Orthocoronavirinae in the family #Coronaviridae, in the order Nidovirales.[5][6]
They are enveloped viruses with a positive-sense single-stranded RNA genome and a nucleocapsid of helical symmetry. The genome size of coronaviruses ranges from approximately 26 to 32 kilobases, the largest among known RNA viruses. The name coronavirus is derived from the Latin corona, meaning "crown" or "halo", which refers to the characteristic appearance of the virus particles (virions): they have a fringe reminiscent of a crown or of a solar corona.
