Seroprevalence of MERS-CoV in healthy adults in western Saudi Arabia, 2011-2016.

Background: The Middle East respiratory syndrome coronavirus (MERS-CoV) is a newly recognized zoonotic coronavirus. Current evidence confirms the role of dromedaries in primary human infections but does not explain the sporadic community cases. However, asymptomatic or subclinical cases could represent a possible source of infection in the community.

Qualitative and Quantitative Determination of MERS-CoV S1-Specific Antibodies Using ELISA.

Indirect enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) enables detection and quantification of antigen-specific antibodies in biological samples such as human or animal sera. Most current MERS-CoV serological assays such as neutralization, immunofluorescence, or protein microarray rely on handling of live MERS-CoV in high containment laboratories, highly trained personnel as well as the need for expensive and special equipment and reagents representing a hurdle for most laboratories especially when resources are limited. In this chapter, we describe a validated and optimized indirect ELISA protocol based on recombinant S1 subunit (amino acids 1-725) of MERS-CoV for qualitative and quantitative determination of MERS-CoV-binding antibodies.

Prevalence of human papillomavirus in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia.

Background: Human papillomaviruses (HPVs) are small, non-enveloped, double-stranded DNA viruses that consist of more than 200 genotypes. Low-risk genotypes are associated with warts or benign lesions, whereas high-risk genotypes are usually associated with malignancies and cancers including cervical cancer. However, the real prevalence and incidence of HPV in Saudi Arabia may be understated due to a lack of comprehensive data reporting.

A Highly Immunogenic, Protective, and Safe Adenovirus-Based Vaccine Expressing Middle East Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus S1-CD40L Fusion Protein in a Transgenic Human Dipeptidyl Peptidase 4 Mouse Model.

Background: Infection control measures have played a major role in limiting human/camel-to-human transmission of Middle East respiratory syndrome coronavirus (MERS-CoV); however, development of effective and safe human or camel vaccines is warranted.

Methods: We extended and optimized our previous recombinant adenovirus 5 (rAd5)-based vaccine platform characterized by in vivo amplified and CD40-mediated specific responses to generate MERS-CoV S1 subunit-based vaccine. We generated rAd5 constructs expressing CD40-targeted S1 fusion protein (rAd5-S1/F/CD40L), untargeted S1 (rAd5-S1), and Green Fluorescent Protein (rAd5-GFP), and evaluated their efficacy and safety in human dipeptidyl peptidase 4 transgenic (hDPP4 Tg+) mice.

Development and validation of different indirect ELISAs for MERS-CoV serological testing.

Since 2012, MERS-CoV has caused up to 2220 cases and 790 deaths in 27 countries with Saudi Arabia being the most affected country with ~83.1% of the cases and ~38.8% local death rate.

Immunogenicity of Candidate MERS-CoV DNA Vaccines Based on the Spike Protein.

MERS-coronavirus is a novel zoonotic pathogen which spread rapidly to >25 countries since 2012. Its apparent endemicity and the wide spread of its reservoir host (dromedary camels) in the Arabian Peninsula highlight the ongoing public health threat of this virus. Therefore, development of effective prophylactic vaccine needs to be urgently explored given that there are no approved prophylactics or therapeutics for humans or animals to date.