Scientists Warn of Potential Pandemic Originating from Amazon Cave

The world has not yet breathed its last after the devastating effects of the Corona virus, as scientists warn of a new epidemic that could start from a cave in the depths of the Amazon where thousands of bats live.

Scientists have shown that the next pandemic in the world could start from a cave like the Planaltina Cave, which extends for more than 1.5 kilometers and is home to thousands of bats, in the Amazon where there are many caves like it throughout the Amazon.

Countless natural habitats and many species of bats are still unstudied or completely undiscovered.

Brazil hosts the third largest number of diverse bats in the world.

It originated from bats

Some of the world’s most destructive viruses have emerged from bats. Scientists are studying the how and why, in hopes of preventing future pandemics like COVID-19.

But with limited funding, nine scientists say they don’t expect to unravel these disease-causing mysteries anytime soon, according to Reuters.

The researchers said that humanity has been fortunate to avoid a major viral spread from the region so far.

Planaltina Cave in Brazil (Reuters)

future outbreaks

In turn, Sebastian Charno, a professor at the Institute of Biology at the University of Brasilia, explained, “If this does not happen now, there may be other outbreaks in the future and we will end up in the situation we are in today of not knowing where this outbreak comes from.”

“This is a big problem, because if we don’t know how to determine the evolutionary path this virus took and how it got to humans, we can’t fight it,” he added.

A Reuters analysis found that Brazilian hopping areas have grown by more than 40% over the past two decades. This is 2.5 times faster than similar risk areas around the world.

Planaltina Cave in Brazil (Reuters)

The reason behind this danger is the rapid deforestation in the Amazon region.

Deforestation is the cause

Scientists said deforestation causes “stress and stress” in bats, and some studies have found that stressed bats can carry more viruses and release more germs into their saliva, urine and feces.

While Ludmila Aguirre, a biologist at the University of Brasilia, noted, “It is very sad to know that we have great potential to detect and prevent new epidemics, without doing anything.”

“On the contrary, we currently have a very large investment in environmental decommissioning,” she added.

Planaltina Cave in Brazil (Reuters)

Scientists and health experts warn that the country is still ill-equipped to detect dangerous pathogens despite the high chances of a new virus emerging from the region.

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