Symptoms of SARS include a sudden onset of high fever, dry cough and shortness of breath, according to the WHO.
It is spread through close contact with an infected person and possibly through secretions or exhaled droplets, the WHO website explains.
The IST, which handles the planning of proposed University responses to any major crisis, is working out plans for possible ways of immunizing or quarantining large numbers of students, should the need arise.
“They are working on various scenarios on how we would address a situation that could affect a major portion of the University population, and where we could make a safe place for students to gather and be taken care of,” Rosenthal said.
But he said the team has not yet made any final decisions about the specifics of such a plan.
More information on SARS is available on the WHO website, www.who.int/en/.
—Staff writer Katharine A. Kaplan can be reached at kkaplan@fas.harvard.edu