In this section, we analyze the RNA viruses responsible for the most high-profile epidemics of our time. Although the section is titled "Coronaviruses", the logic of studying zoonotic infections with high pandemic potential requires us to also examine the causative agents of particularly dangerous hemorrhagic fevers—Ebola and Marburg viruses (family Filoviridae).
The section provides a detailed breakdown of virion structure, pathogenicity factors, and epidemiology. You will trace the evolution of coronaviruses from agents of common ARVI to the lethal SARS, MERS, and SARS-CoV-2. A separate block is dedicated to how filoviruses invade macrophages and endothelium, causing systemic hemorrhage and shock.
During practical classes and exams, instructors love to test the mechanisms of the "cytokine storm", coronavirus receptor specificity (especially affinity for ACE2), and laboratory diagnostic algorithms. Be sure to pay attention to biosafety issues: work with Ebola and Marburg viruses is strictly restricted to maximum containment laboratories (BSL-4).