Chapter 1 Etiological Characteristics

The new CoronaVirus belongs to the β genus Coronavirus, which has an envelope, particles that are round or oval, often polymorphic, and have a diameter of 60-140nm. Its genetic characteristics are significantly different from SARS-CoV and MERS-CoV. Current research shows that it has more than 85% homology with bat SARS-like coronavirus (bat-SL-CoVZC45). When isolated and cultured in vitro, the new coronavirus can be found in human respiratory epithelial cells in about 96 hours, while it takes about 6 days to isolate and culture in Vero E6 and Huh-7 cell lines.

Most of the knowledge about the physical and chemical properties of coronavirus comes from the research on SARS-CoV and MERS-CoV. The virus is sensitive to ultraviolet rays and heat: heat for 30 minutes at 56°C, lipid solvents such as ether, 75% ethanol, chlorine-containing disinfectant, peracetic acid and chloroform can effectively inactivate the virus. Chlorhexidine cannot effectively inactivate the virus.