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The coronavirus, which has been paralyzing the world for almost a year, has its origin in bats. The evidence is growing, as the World Health Organization (WHO) said on Tuesday. The theory is now supported by other findings: In Thailand, scientists have found a new type of coronavirus in the blood of five bats.
The virus that causes Covid-19 shares 91.5 percent of its genetic code with that of the newly identified virus called RacCS203. Researchers believe that this virus cannot infect humans because it cannot bind to so-called ACE2 receptors, the gateway for Covid-19 to enter the human body. However, antibodies circulating in the blood of infected bats and in the blood of a pangolin were found to be effective in neutralizing Sars-CoV-2.
Probably mutates into an intermediate host
According to the scientists, this suggests that bat coronaviruses cannot normally infect humans. The authors suspect that these only develop the ability to infect human cells when they first attack an intermediate host such as a pangolin. Scientists assume that there it mutates and changes slightly in shape. It can then bind to human ACE2 receptors.
The discovery by Thai scientists also shows that the spread of the coronavirus in bat populations is much greater than previously assumed. Until now, similar viruses were known mainly from China and Japan. The find in Thailand indicates a southward expansion. It can also be assumed that there are many more types of coronavirus in circulation than is believed.
International cooperation to investigate the origin
Scientists call for greater international cooperation to investigate the origin of the coronavirus currently circulating in humans. “Cross-border surveillance is urgently required to find the immediate precursor virus of Sars-Cov-2,” they write in their study published in the journal “Nature Communications.” (noo)
