A coronavirus that originated in Wuhan, China, has killed at least 170 people and infected more than 7,000.
According to Business Insider, coronaviruses are zoonotic diseases, meaning they jump from animals to humans.
But experts say epidemics such as these are likely to continue, for a number of reasons.
Infectious diseases will continue to emerge and re-emerge.
We're in an age of epidemics because of globalization, because of encroachment on wild environments.