/ 10 February 2021

Trouble with nailing down COVID’s origin story

The group of scientists in China as part of a World Health Organisation inquiry into the origin of the coronavirus said late yesterday that viruses similar to COVID-19 can be detected in many animals, but they haven’t found the direct link between animal-to-human transmission. Long story short, bats and pangolins in China (along with other animals) have coronaviruses – but not the exact strain that created the global crisis. With no ‘natural reservoir’ of COVID-19 in an animal, the experts believe there was animal-to-human transmission of a virus at some point. That version then evolved and spread between humans. As for the ‘leak from a Wuhan lab’ theory – “extremely unlikely,” said Peter Ben Embarek, the WHO team’s leader. “The possible path from whatever original animal species all the way through to the Huanan market could have taken a very long and convoluted path also involving movements across borders,” he said.

Know someone who'd be interested in this story? Click to share...

The Squiz Today

Your shortcut to being informed, we've got your news needs covered.

Get the Squiz Today newsletter

Quick, agenda-free news that doesn't take itself too seriously. Get on it.