New bat coronavirus in China shares traits with COVID-19 virus
The South China Morning Post reports that a new strain of coronavirus has been identified in bats in China. A team of researchers has indicated that it may spread in the same manner as the virus responsible for the multi-year pandemic beginning in late 2019 and early 2020.
Chinese scientists warn that the newly discovered virus utilises the same cell receptor as SARS-CoV-2, which is responsible for the COVID-19 pandemic.
According to the South China Morning Post, Shi Zhengli, a prominent Chinese virologist, led the research. She is also known as the "batwoman" due to her extensive work on coronaviruses found in bats, including her study in Wuhan at the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic. The project also involved scientists from a laboratory, the Academy of Sciences in Guangzhou, Wuhan University, and the Wuhan Institute of Virology.
The media reminds us that one theory regarding the spread of the coronavirus five years ago suggests that the virus may have escaped from a laboratory in Wuhan. However, no definitive evidence supports this hypothesis to date. Many scientists believe that the virus transitioned to humans from bats via an intermediary host. Shi Zhengli herself has repeatedly denied that her institute is accountable for the pandemic.
The newly discovered virus belongs to a new lineage of HKU5 coronaviruses, first identified in bats in Hong Kong. It is a member of the merbecovirus subfamily, which includes the virus responsible for Middle East Respiratory Syndrome (MERS).
Particularly concerning is that the new virus can bind to the human angiotensin-converting enzyme (ACE2)—the same one SARS-CoV-2 uses to infect cells. This means it could pose a potential threat to public health.
Scientists maintain, however, that despite HKU5's potential to cause an epidemic, there is currently no reason for alarm.
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