After more than six months of the pandemic corona virus occurring in various parts of the world, researchers are still investigating the origin of the virus. However, a study published in Nature Microbiology may find the answer.
A group of scientists from the United States, China and Europe compared the mutation patterns of SARS-CoV-2 that caused this pandemic with other viruses and found the evolution of the virus. According to the study, they found the lineage that produced this COVID-19 outbreak in bats.
“Collectively, our analyzes show bats to be the main reservoir for the SARS-CoV-2 lineage. While there may be other species that could also be the source of transmission, this evidence is consistent with viruses that evolved in bats that produce bat sarbecoviruses that replicate in channels. upper respiration of humans and pangolins, “said the study authors quoted from Fox News, Friday (18/9/2020).
The research team said, this new Corona virus evolved from other bat viruses from 40 to 70 years ago. They also say that the lineage that gave rise to SARS-CoV-2 has been spreading to bats for decades without realizing it.
Researchers say that SARS-CoV-2 this is genetically similar to about 96 percent of the Corona RaTG13 virus. This virus was found in the horseshoe bat Rhinolophus affinis in 2013 in Yunnan Province, China.
“This ability to estimate the time of divergence after deciphering the history of recombination that we are currently developing could lead to insights into the origin of many different viral pathogens,” explains lead researcher Philippe Lemey of the Department of Evolutionary and Computational Virology, KE Leuven in a release.
In the research report, the authors say the new Coronavirus has the same properties as older viruses from the lineage-binding domain response (RBD) lineage to protein spikes, and allows it to bind to human receptor cells. Its nature that binds to human ACE2 receptors is a trait of an ancestral virus that is also present in viruses in bats.
“This means that another virus capable of infecting humans spread from horseshoe bats in China,” said David Robertson, who is professor of computational virology at the MRC-University of Glasgow Center for Virus Research.
“Although there is also that possibility pangolin as an intermediate host that is the source of transmission of SARS-CoV-2 to humans, but there is no scientific evidence that can prove it, “he continued.
However, Robertson also reminded to look for and prioritize viruses that are considered to be able to easily infect humans to prevent further pandemics in the future.
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