The full, official name for the virus that causes COVID-19 is Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), while the disease it causes is called Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19), according to the World Health Organization (WHO).
ICTV announced “severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2)” as the name of the new virus on 11 February 2020. This name was chosen because the virus is genetically related to the coronavirus responsible for the SARS outbreak of 2003. While related, the two viruses are different.
Severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) is the virus that causes the disease known as coronavirus disease 2019. The name of the disease is abbreviated COVID-19 where “CO” stands for corona, “VI” for virus, D” for disease, and “19” for the year in which it was identified.
On 11 February 2020, the International Committee on Taxonomy of Viruses adopted the official name "severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2" (SARS‑CoV‑2).
Called FLiRT due to the technical names for its spike protein mutations, which include the letters F, L, R and T, FLiRT is a subvariant of last winter's dominant strain Omicron, and is driving this summer's COVID wave.
You are contagious one to two days before you experience symptoms and a few days after symptoms subside.
The latest COVID-19 variant known as XFG, nicknamed Stratus, continues to spread throughout the United States, driving a summer spike in cases.
Subclade K is a newly emerged subgroup of a well-established human seasonal flu virus called H3N2 influenza A virus. So far, there's no evidence from laboratory or population studies that this strain can bypass existing immunity from past influenza infections or vaccines.
Naming virus species
A virus species name is always written in italics2 with the first element (the genus name) beginning with an uppercase letter. In the binomial format now mandated by the ICTV [2, 3], the second element, which is the species epithet, is in free form.
Although the term corona was first used in English in the 1500s, it was borrowed directly from the Latin word for “crown.” Corona is derived from the Ancient Greek κορώνη (korōnè), meaning “garland” or “wreath,” coming from a proto-Indo-European root, sker- or ker-, meaning “to turn” or “to bend.”
If your COVID-19 test is positive
Monitor your symptoms. If you have any emergency warning signs, seek emergency care immediately. Seek health care right away for treatment if you have risk factors for severe illness. Treatment may be an option to make your symptoms less severe and shorten the time you are sick.
The mortality rate in COVID‐19 (5.6%, P < . 001) was lower than SARS (13%, P < . 001) and MERS (35%, P < . 001) between all confirmed patients.
You can be contagious for 1-2 days before symptoms appear and up to 8-10 days following symptom onset. You can spread the virus even if you do not have symptoms. Social distancing should continue until, for at least 24 hours, symptoms improve and you're fever-free without medications.
If you are found to be infected with a common coronavirus (229E, NL63, OC43, and HKU1), that does not mean you are infected with the 2019 novel coronavirus. There are different tests to determine if you are infected with 2019 novel coronavirus. Your healthcare provider can determine if you should be tested.
The 12 Most Common Long COVID Symptoms
The common cold, the flu, RSV, and COVID-19 are viral respiratory infections that spread easily during certain seasons.
The seven Baltimore groups are for double-stranded DNA (dsDNA) viruses, single-stranded DNA (ssDNA) viruses, double-stranded RNA (dsRNA) viruses, positive-sense single-stranded RNA (+ssRNA) viruses, negative-sense single-stranded RNA (–ssRNA) viruses, ssRNA viruses that have a DNA intermediate in their life cycle ( ...
History of virology
In 1892, Dmitri Ivanovsky used one of these filters to show that sap from a diseased tobacco plant remained infectious to healthy tobacco plants even after filtration. Martinus Beijerinck named the infectious agent “virus,” and this discovery is considered the beginning of virology.
The World Health Organization (WHO) names new coronavirus variants using the letters of the Greek alphabet, starting with the Alpha variant, which emerged in 2020.
Subclade K is a variant of the H3N2 family of viruses, which can trigger more severe seasons and which seem to be harder on older people, who are among the most vulnerable to flu. Tap to unmute.
The strain — a variant of influenza A (H3N2) sometimes referred to as the “super flu” — is the most commonly reported flu virus this season, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's latest Influenza Surveillance Report.
'It's completely out of control': Scientists warn bird flu could spark a human pandemic in 2026. The Transmission. University of Nebraska Medical Center.
3.4. 1. You can see our latest data on the National flu and COVID-19 surveillance reports. Current data does not indicate that these variants lead to more severe illness than other variants in circulation.
Taking Care of Yourself at Home
June 26, 2025 – The new COVID-19 variant that now makes up about a third of U.S. COVID cases has a signature symptom: a painful sore throat that feels like "razor blades." "This 'razor blade sore throat' was reported as a common symptom in China," where the variant first emerged in May, said Matthew S.