Here's how to protect yourself from the Wuhan coronavirus while travelling

Two weeks ago, Chinese medical authorities reported a mysterious new coronavirus in Wuhan, the most populous city in central China.

The virus has so far infected around 300 people and killed six.

At first, authorities suspected that the coronavirus - which likely originated in a seafood market - could only spread from animals to humans. But they have since confirmed that humans can transmit the virus to one other.

The coronavirus family is a large group of viruses that typically affect the respiratory tract. Coronaviruses can lead to illnesses like the common cold, pneumonia, and severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS), a potentially fatal illness that resulted in 8,000 cases and 774 deaths in China between November 2002 and July 2003.

The timing of the new outbreak is particularly worrisome, since hundreds of millions of people are expected to travel to China for the Lunar New Year, which begins on Saturday and lasts until February 8.

"Travel spreads this kind of virus like wildfire," Adrian Hyzler, the chief medical officer at Healix International, which offers risk-management solutions for global travelers, told Business Insider. "I think we're going to see cases popping up in cities all over the world."

South Korea, Japan, Taiwan, and the US each have one confirmed case, and two cases have been recorded in Thailand.