A new coronavirus (CoV) called SARS-CoV-2 emerged in Wuhan, China in
December 2019 as the etiological agent of a viral pneumonia called COVID-19. The
global spread of SARS-CoV-2 has been so extensive that the WHO declared COVID-19
a pandemic on March 11, 2020. Below, we discuss the emergence of SARS-CoV-2 and
provide the historical context, which strongly suggests emerging CoVs provide an
immediate threat to global public health and will continue to do so in the future