In some ways, we’ve been lucky with the COVID-19 pandemic.
The virus that causes it is highly contagious but not as lethal as others in its coronavirus family. The initial SARS virus killed roughly 1 in 10 of those infected; a relative called Middle East respiratory syndrome, or MERS, still kills 1 in 3.
But we may not always be so lucky. With animals, including bats, colonized by hundreds of coronaviruses, another one might come along with the infectivity of SARS-CoV-2 and the death rate of MERS.
Hoping to prevent that, scientists on Tuesday unveiled a “road map” for developing a new vaccine that would be broadly protective against all coronaviruses.