Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is an infectious disease caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The disease was first identified in December 2019 in Wuhan, the capital of China's Hubei province, and has since spread globally, resulting in the on-going 2019–20 coronavirus pandemic. The World Health Organization (WHO) declared the COVID-19 outbreak a Public Health Emergency of International Concern (PHEIC) and a pandemic on 11 March 2020. Presently, the research on COVID-19 is unprecedented and in initial stages. Based on the literature on COVID-19 virus across Google Scholar, PubMed and Preprint servers, we systematically summarize the content on virus structure, pathogenicity, activity, diagnosis, prevention and treatment strategies of COVID-19 virus. The objective of this review is to support the public to identify and deal with the 2019 novel coronavirus (SARS-CoV-2) and provide an exhaustive literature search for researchers working on COVID-19.