At a glance
This page provides information about the seven types of human coronaviruses, including MERS-CoV, SARS-CoV, and SARS-CoV-2.
Human Coronavirus Types
Coronaviruses are RNA viruses that can be found in bats and other animals. Seven coronaviruses have been found to circulate in human populations. These are called human coronaviruses. These viruses can infect human cells in airways and other tissues when their virus spike proteins bind to cell receptors. Coronaviruses are named for those proteins, which look like the spikes of a crown ("corona").
Four common human coronaviruses have been identified since the 1960s. These usually cause mild to moderate upper-respiratory tract illnesses, like the common cold. Most people get infected with one or more of these viruses at some point in their lives.
1. 229E (an alpha coronavirus)
2. NL63 (an alpha coronavirus)
3. OC43 (a beta coronavirus)
4. HKU1 (a beta coronavirus
Three other human coronaviruses have been identified since the 2000s and can cause severe illness in the population:
5. SARS-CoV (a beta coronavirus) caused an epidemic of Severe Acute Respiratory Distress Syndrome (SARS) during 2002–2004. No cases have been reported since 2004.
6. MERS-CoV (a beta coronavirus) was first reported in 2012 and causes Middle East Respiratory Syndrome (MERS).
7. SARS-CoV-2 (a beta coronavirus) was first reported in 2020 and causes Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19).
- National Center for Immunization and Respiratory Diseases (NCIRD), Coronavirus and Other Respiratory Viruses Division (CORVD)