A Systematic Review on Disease ‘X’
Corresponding Author(s) : S. Kameshwaran
kamesh.pharm@gmail.com
International Journal of Allied Medical Sciences and Clinical Research,
Vol. 9 No. 1 (2021): 2021 Volume - 9 Issue-1
Abstract
As the coronavirus era continues to plague civilization, there is a"unknown" danger lingering deep in the mountains, miles away from a town, waiting to cause the "next pandemic" in some corner of the world. The enigmatic name assigned to the very significant danger posed to human health by unknown viruses is Disease X. Disease X, alongside recognized killers such as SARS and Ebola, is on a short list of pathogens perceived to be a high priority for study by the World Health Organization. It's "Disease X" and this disease's X-factor is that anything about it is mysterious. Technically, it is not a "disease" but is a field of research for scientists exploring the possibilities of the next pandemic. Disease X is certainly not a new disorder, but a possible illness that has yet to be found. Disease X is a placeholder name that was adopted in February 2018 by the World Health Organization (WHO). It is not a threat currently identified, but a hypothetical illness that might arise and spark an outbreak/epidemic/pandemic in the future. The latest analysis is being carried out in order to examine the evidence available on disease X.
Keywords
Disease X
WHO
Pandemic
SARS
1.
S. Kameshwaran, Dr.N.Sriram, Asok kumar DS, N.Elavarasan, Dr.A.Jyothi Laxmi. A Systematic Review on Disease ‘X’. Int. J. of Allied Med. Sci. and Clin. Res. [Internet]. 2021 Feb. 2 [cited 2026 Apr. 14];9(1):11-7. Available from: https://ijamscr.com/ijamscr/article/view/958
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References
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[34]. "R&D Blueprint: Marion Koopmans (Biography)". World Health Organization. Retrieved 20 March 2020.
[35]. Mercer, David,"Coronavirus outbreak could be feared 'Disease X', says World Health Organisation adviser". Sky News. Retrieved 2020.
[36]. Aaro, David. "What is Disease X?". Fox News. Retrieved 2020.
[37]. Cousins, Sophie. "WHO hedges its bets: the next global pandemic could be disease X". BMJ. 361: k2015. doi:10.1136/bmj.k2015. ISSN 0959-8138, 2018. PMID 29748222. S2CID 13668695.
[38]. Campbell, Denis. "Bacteria developing new ways to resist antibiotics, doctors warn". The Guardian. Retrieved 2020.
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References
[1]. https://edition.cnn.com/2020/12/22/africa/drc-forest-new-virus-intl/index.html. Retrieved on 2021.
[2]. https://www.who.int/activities/prioritizing-diseases-for-research-and-development-in-emergency-contexts. Retrieved on 2021.
[3]. Daszak, Peter, "We Knew Disease X Was Coming. It's Here Now". The New York Times. Retrieved 2020.
[4]. Gale, Jason. "Coronavirus May Be 'Disease X' Health Experts Warned About". Bloomberg News. Retrieved 2020.
[5]. Shi, Zhengli; Jiang, Shibo, "The First Disease X is caused by a Highly Transmissible Acute Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus". VirologicaSinica. 35(3), 2020, 63–265. Doi:10.1007/s12250-020-00206-5. PMC 7091198. PMID 32060789.
[6]. "List of Blueprint priority diseases". World Health Organization. Retrieved 2020.
[7]. Editorial. "What is Disease X?", Economist. Retrieved. By listing Disease X, an undetermined disease, the WHO is acknowledging that outbreaks do not always come from an identified source and that, as it admits, "A serious international epidemic could be caused by a pathogen currently unknown to cause human disease".
[8]. Barns, Tom. "World Health Organization fears new 'Disease X' could cause a global pandemic". The Independent. Retrieved 2020.
[9]. Scutti, Susan. "World Health Organization gets ready for 'Disease X'". CNN News. Retrieved 2020.
[10]. "R&D Blueprint - Scientific Advisory Group members". World Health Organization. Retrieved 2020.
[11]. World Health Organization Annual review of diseases prioritized under the Research and Development Blueprint (PDF) (Report). Geneva, Switzerland. p. 17. Retrieved 2020.
[12]. Nuki, Paul; Shaikh, Alanna. "Scientists put on alert for deadly new pathogen – 'Disease X'". Daily Telegraph. Retrieved 2018.
[13]. "R&D Blueprint". World Health Organization. Retrieved 2020.
[14]. Shaikh, Alanna; Nuki, Paul. "What is 'Disease X', the mystery killer keeping scientists awake?". The Daily Telegraph. ISSN 0307-1235. Retrieved 2020.
[15]. Lee, Bruce Y. "Disease X is what may Become the Biggest Infectious Threat to our World". Forbes. Retrieved 2018.
[16]. "WHO | List of Blueprint priority diseases". WHO. Retrieved 2020.
[17]. Whittam Smith, Andreas. "One hundred years on from the Spanish Flu, we are facing another major pandemic". The Independent. Retrieved 2020.
[18]. Gulland, Anne. "Panic and complacency: how the world reacts to disease outbreaks". The Daily Telegraph. Retrieved 2020.
[19]. Miller, Korin. "Disease X Might Cause The Next Big Global Epidemic". Women's Health. Retrieved 2020.
[20]. Hatchett, Richard. "It might sound like science fiction, but Disease X is something we must prepare for". Daily Telegraph. Retrieved 2020.
[21]. Gouglas, Dimitrios; Christodoulou, Mario; Plotkin, Stanley A.; Hatchett, Richard. "CEPI: Driving Progress towards Epidemic Preparedness And Response". Epidemiologic Reviews. 41(1), 2019, 28–33.
Doi:10.1093/epirev/mxz012. PMC 7108492.PMID 31673694.
[22]. Shute, Joe. "Virus hunters: Meet the scientists searching for Disease X". Daily Telegraph. Retrieved 2020.
[23]. Gulland, Anne. "Revealed: Public Health England 'hot on the trail' of Disease X". Daily Telegraph. Retrieved 2020.
[24]. Alexander, Harriet. "Disease X dummy run: World health experts prepare for a deadly pandemic and its fallout". Daily Telegraph. Retrieved 2020.
[25]. Hamblin, James, "The Curve Is Not Flat Enough". The Atlantic. Retrieved 2020.
[26]. Simpson, Shmona; Kaufmann, Michael C.; Glozman, Vitaly; Chakrabarti, Ajoy. "Disease X: accelerating the development of medical countermeasures for the next pandemic". The Lancet Infectious Diseases. 20 (5), 2020, e108–e115. doi:10.1016/S1473-3099(20)30123-7. PMC 7158580. PMID 32197097.
[27]. Knapton, Sarah. "Drug created to fight 'Disease X' over 10 years ago will be tested in battle against coronavirus". The Daily Telegraph. Retrieved 2020.
[28]. Cousins, Sophie. "WHO hedges its bets: the next global pandemic could be disease X". The BMJ. 361: k2015. doi:10.1136/bmj.k2015. ISSN 0959-8138. PMID 29748222. S2CID 13668695. Retrieved 2020.
[29]. Gulland, Anne. "Deadly Chinese poultry flu could be 'disease X' that sparks worldwide pandemic". Daily Telegraph. Retrieved 2020.
[30]. Andrew, Scottie. "What is Disease X? Deadly Bird Flu Virus Could Be Next Pandemic". Newsweek. Retrieved 2020.
[31]. Majid, Aisha. "Disease X: China ignores UK request to share samples of flu virus with pandemic potential". Daily Telegraph. Retrieved 2010.
[32]. Gulland, Anne (2020-01-09). "Have Chinese researchers uncovered the new disease X?". The Daily Telegraph. ISSN 0307-1235. Retrieved 2020.
[33]. McKie, Robin. "Coronavirus: the huge unknowns". The Guardian. This hope now looks forlorn with the sudden emergence of the respiratory disease Covid-19, which has rapidly acquired most of the characteristic of a Disease X.Retrieved 2020
[34]. "R&D Blueprint: Marion Koopmans (Biography)". World Health Organization. Retrieved 20 March 2020.
[35]. Mercer, David,"Coronavirus outbreak could be feared 'Disease X', says World Health Organisation adviser". Sky News. Retrieved 2020.
[36]. Aaro, David. "What is Disease X?". Fox News. Retrieved 2020.
[37]. Cousins, Sophie. "WHO hedges its bets: the next global pandemic could be disease X". BMJ. 361: k2015. doi:10.1136/bmj.k2015. ISSN 0959-8138, 2018. PMID 29748222. S2CID 13668695.
[38]. Campbell, Denis. "Bacteria developing new ways to resist antibiotics, doctors warn". The Guardian. Retrieved 2020.
[39]. https://www.indiatoday.in/science/story/what-is-disease-x-why-everyone-talking-about-it-1758875-2021-01-14. Retrieved on 2020.
[2]. https://www.who.int/activities/prioritizing-diseases-for-research-and-development-in-emergency-contexts. Retrieved on 2021.
[3]. Daszak, Peter, "We Knew Disease X Was Coming. It's Here Now". The New York Times. Retrieved 2020.
[4]. Gale, Jason. "Coronavirus May Be 'Disease X' Health Experts Warned About". Bloomberg News. Retrieved 2020.
[5]. Shi, Zhengli; Jiang, Shibo, "The First Disease X is caused by a Highly Transmissible Acute Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus". VirologicaSinica. 35(3), 2020, 63–265. Doi:10.1007/s12250-020-00206-5. PMC 7091198. PMID 32060789.
[6]. "List of Blueprint priority diseases". World Health Organization. Retrieved 2020.
[7]. Editorial. "What is Disease X?", Economist. Retrieved. By listing Disease X, an undetermined disease, the WHO is acknowledging that outbreaks do not always come from an identified source and that, as it admits, "A serious international epidemic could be caused by a pathogen currently unknown to cause human disease".
[8]. Barns, Tom. "World Health Organization fears new 'Disease X' could cause a global pandemic". The Independent. Retrieved 2020.
[9]. Scutti, Susan. "World Health Organization gets ready for 'Disease X'". CNN News. Retrieved 2020.
[10]. "R&D Blueprint - Scientific Advisory Group members". World Health Organization. Retrieved 2020.
[11]. World Health Organization Annual review of diseases prioritized under the Research and Development Blueprint (PDF) (Report). Geneva, Switzerland. p. 17. Retrieved 2020.
[12]. Nuki, Paul; Shaikh, Alanna. "Scientists put on alert for deadly new pathogen – 'Disease X'". Daily Telegraph. Retrieved 2018.
[13]. "R&D Blueprint". World Health Organization. Retrieved 2020.
[14]. Shaikh, Alanna; Nuki, Paul. "What is 'Disease X', the mystery killer keeping scientists awake?". The Daily Telegraph. ISSN 0307-1235. Retrieved 2020.
[15]. Lee, Bruce Y. "Disease X is what may Become the Biggest Infectious Threat to our World". Forbes. Retrieved 2018.
[16]. "WHO | List of Blueprint priority diseases". WHO. Retrieved 2020.
[17]. Whittam Smith, Andreas. "One hundred years on from the Spanish Flu, we are facing another major pandemic". The Independent. Retrieved 2020.
[18]. Gulland, Anne. "Panic and complacency: how the world reacts to disease outbreaks". The Daily Telegraph. Retrieved 2020.
[19]. Miller, Korin. "Disease X Might Cause The Next Big Global Epidemic". Women's Health. Retrieved 2020.
[20]. Hatchett, Richard. "It might sound like science fiction, but Disease X is something we must prepare for". Daily Telegraph. Retrieved 2020.
[21]. Gouglas, Dimitrios; Christodoulou, Mario; Plotkin, Stanley A.; Hatchett, Richard. "CEPI: Driving Progress towards Epidemic Preparedness And Response". Epidemiologic Reviews. 41(1), 2019, 28–33.
Doi:10.1093/epirev/mxz012. PMC 7108492.PMID 31673694.
[22]. Shute, Joe. "Virus hunters: Meet the scientists searching for Disease X". Daily Telegraph. Retrieved 2020.
[23]. Gulland, Anne. "Revealed: Public Health England 'hot on the trail' of Disease X". Daily Telegraph. Retrieved 2020.
[24]. Alexander, Harriet. "Disease X dummy run: World health experts prepare for a deadly pandemic and its fallout". Daily Telegraph. Retrieved 2020.
[25]. Hamblin, James, "The Curve Is Not Flat Enough". The Atlantic. Retrieved 2020.
[26]. Simpson, Shmona; Kaufmann, Michael C.; Glozman, Vitaly; Chakrabarti, Ajoy. "Disease X: accelerating the development of medical countermeasures for the next pandemic". The Lancet Infectious Diseases. 20 (5), 2020, e108–e115. doi:10.1016/S1473-3099(20)30123-7. PMC 7158580. PMID 32197097.
[27]. Knapton, Sarah. "Drug created to fight 'Disease X' over 10 years ago will be tested in battle against coronavirus". The Daily Telegraph. Retrieved 2020.
[28]. Cousins, Sophie. "WHO hedges its bets: the next global pandemic could be disease X". The BMJ. 361: k2015. doi:10.1136/bmj.k2015. ISSN 0959-8138. PMID 29748222. S2CID 13668695. Retrieved 2020.
[29]. Gulland, Anne. "Deadly Chinese poultry flu could be 'disease X' that sparks worldwide pandemic". Daily Telegraph. Retrieved 2020.
[30]. Andrew, Scottie. "What is Disease X? Deadly Bird Flu Virus Could Be Next Pandemic". Newsweek. Retrieved 2020.
[31]. Majid, Aisha. "Disease X: China ignores UK request to share samples of flu virus with pandemic potential". Daily Telegraph. Retrieved 2010.
[32]. Gulland, Anne (2020-01-09). "Have Chinese researchers uncovered the new disease X?". The Daily Telegraph. ISSN 0307-1235. Retrieved 2020.
[33]. McKie, Robin. "Coronavirus: the huge unknowns". The Guardian. This hope now looks forlorn with the sudden emergence of the respiratory disease Covid-19, which has rapidly acquired most of the characteristic of a Disease X.Retrieved 2020
[34]. "R&D Blueprint: Marion Koopmans (Biography)". World Health Organization. Retrieved 20 March 2020.
[35]. Mercer, David,"Coronavirus outbreak could be feared 'Disease X', says World Health Organisation adviser". Sky News. Retrieved 2020.
[36]. Aaro, David. "What is Disease X?". Fox News. Retrieved 2020.
[37]. Cousins, Sophie. "WHO hedges its bets: the next global pandemic could be disease X". BMJ. 361: k2015. doi:10.1136/bmj.k2015. ISSN 0959-8138, 2018. PMID 29748222. S2CID 13668695.
[38]. Campbell, Denis. "Bacteria developing new ways to resist antibiotics, doctors warn". The Guardian. Retrieved 2020.
[39]. https://www.indiatoday.in/science/story/what-is-disease-x-why-everyone-talking-about-it-1758875-2021-01-14. Retrieved on 2020.