Middle Eastern humans and camels alike have been recently diagnosed with a deadly Sars-like virus called MERS.
The Middle East Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus (MERS-CoV) was first seen in Saudi Arabia last year, and has since been reported in "Qatar, France, Germany, Italy, Tunisia and Britain," Reuters reported. The illness killed 64 people last year.
Oman's first patient died from MERS Sunday from lung failure.
"The 68-year-old man, who was admitted to hospital last month in the oasis town of Nizwa, southwest of Muscat, had been suffering from diabetes and high blood pressure, among other complaints," Reuters reported.
Four other patients were admitted to the hospital with MERS-like symptoms, but one made a full recovery.
Now, a camel that had been owned by an individual that contracted MERS has tested positive for the virus. Medical researchers are unsure if the animals or responsible for spreading the disease to humans or if the camel in question contracted the virus from its owner, the BBC reported.
The coronavirus mainly causes respiratory complications, so researchers believe it can be spread through droplets released into the air by a cough or sneeze from an infected person. Many experts believe the dangerous virus is not particularly contagious since there have been so few reported cases.
Since September of 2012 there have been 153 laboratory-confirmed cases of people infected with MERS.
The health ministry claims to be working to"isolate the virus and compare its genetic structure with that of the patient's," the BBC reported.
"[If the virus in both camel and patient] "prove to be identical, this would be a first scientific discovery worldwide, and a door to identify the source of the virus," the ministry stated, according to the BBC.
Symptoms of MERS include "sever respiratory illness" including " fever, cough, and shortness of breath," the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) reported.
