COVID 19 Epidemic Editorial
COVID 19 is a novel form of coronavirus which has spread from its initial identification in Wuhan, China, and has been declared a pandemic by the World Health Organisation (WHO) [1] Coronaviruses are a large family of viruses that cause illnesses ranging from the common cold to more severe diseases such as Middle East Respiratory Syndrome (MERSCoV) and Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS CoV) Coronaviruses are zoonotic, meaning they are transmitted between animals and people. Several known coronaviruses are circulating in animals that have not yet infected humans [2] but it appears that COVID 19 has crossed species from bats to snakes [3] and pangolins then to humans, initially via the live animal 'wet markets' of Wuhan [4]