Abstract

Severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS) took everybody by surprise. Its emergence was one of the most significant microbiological events of 2003. It challenged microbiologists to identify the aetiological agent and satisfy Koch's postulates — in so far as they ever can be met for a virus — in real time. Not only were the patients' respiratory secretions and the agents grown in cultured cells put under the microscope, but so were the actions of politicians. What lessons can we learn from SARS?

Author affiliations

1. Hugh Pennington is at the Department of Medical Microbiology, University of Aberdeen, Foresterhill, Aberdeen AB25 2ZD, UK.
   Email: t.h.pennington@abdn.ac.uk

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