Genetic analysis of virus suggest role of bats and snakes: Report
Beijing:24.01,2020
A new strain of coronavirus that emerged in China may have originated in bats or snakes, according to genetic analysis of the virus. The theories are based on examination of the genome sequence of the virus released by authorities in the wake of the outbreak.
One study, published on Tuesday in the journal Science China Life Sciences, which is sponsored by Beijing’s Chinese Academy of Sciences, looked at the relations between the new strain and other viruses. It found the virus was closely related to a strain that exists in bats. “Bats being the native host of the Wuhan CoV (coronavirus) would be the logical and convenient reasoning, though it remains likely there was intermediate host(s) in the transmission cascade from bats to humans,” the researchers wrote in the paper.
That study did not speculate about which animal could have been an “intermediate host”, but a second study published on Wednesday in the Journal of Medical Virology identifies snakes as the possible culprit. “Results from our analysis suggest that snake is the most probable wildlife animal reservoir,” the paper says.
Neither study explained how the virus may have been transmitted from animals to humans. But they could offer clues for the source of the outbreak. The food market where the virus surfaced offered a range of exotic wildlife for sale, including live foxes, crocodiles, wolf puppies, giant salamanders, snakes, rats, peacocks, porcupines, camel meat and other game. AFP
Beijing:24.01,2020
A new strain of coronavirus that emerged in China may have originated in bats or snakes, according to genetic analysis of the virus. The theories are based on examination of the genome sequence of the virus released by authorities in the wake of the outbreak.
One study, published on Tuesday in the journal Science China Life Sciences, which is sponsored by Beijing’s Chinese Academy of Sciences, looked at the relations between the new strain and other viruses. It found the virus was closely related to a strain that exists in bats. “Bats being the native host of the Wuhan CoV (coronavirus) would be the logical and convenient reasoning, though it remains likely there was intermediate host(s) in the transmission cascade from bats to humans,” the researchers wrote in the paper.
That study did not speculate about which animal could have been an “intermediate host”, but a second study published on Wednesday in the Journal of Medical Virology identifies snakes as the possible culprit. “Results from our analysis suggest that snake is the most probable wildlife animal reservoir,” the paper says.
Neither study explained how the virus may have been transmitted from animals to humans. But they could offer clues for the source of the outbreak. The food market where the virus surfaced offered a range of exotic wildlife for sale, including live foxes, crocodiles, wolf puppies, giant salamanders, snakes, rats, peacocks, porcupines, camel meat and other game. AFP
No comments:
Post a Comment