This article aims at the presentation of most prominent infectious agents that emerged just few months age. Coronaviruses (CoVs) constitute a large group of ssRNA viruses that cause acute and chronic diseases in animals
and humans. They show a high degree of genetic variability resulting in the existence of four major genera (alfa-, beta-, gamma– and deltacoronaviruses), that further diverge into multiple subgenera and genetic lineages. Different types of CoVs occur naturally in cattle, horses, pigs, cats, dogs, rodents and many species of birds. Bats however, are considered as the natural reservoir and primary source of novel coronaviruses with zoonotic potential, including MERS-CoV, SARS-CoV-1 and SARS-CoV-2. There is evidence that intermediate hosts (e.g. civets, dromedary camels, pangolins), can play a key role in the transmission of coronaviruses from bats to humans. Currently, the major concern is associated with SARS-CoV-2, a causative agent of COVID-19 – a human disease that originated in China in late 2019 and spread globally in the early 2020. It has been shown recently, that SARS-CoV-2 is capable of infecting some species of animals, including cats, tigers, ferrets and minks. These rare
cases have most likely been caused by human-to-animal transmission and further extensive research are required to elucidate the role of animals in the epidemiology of COVID-19
