Researchers from Wuhan University and the Chinese Academy of Sciences have discovered a new strain of coronavirus called NeoCoV, which could jump from animals to humans. The findings of the study - which has not yet been peer-reviewed - were published in BioRxiv earlier this week.
As the Independent reports, however, NeoCoV is not actually a new variant of the coronavirus that caused the global Covid-19 pandemic. Rather, it comes from a different type of coronavirus, associated with Middle East respiratory syndrome (Mers-CoV).
Mers-CoV, whose origin is not fully understood, is a virus that jumped to humans from runaway camels. The virus is zoonotic, meaning it is transmitted from animals to humans and through direct or indirect contact with animals.
"Mers-CoV has been detected in running camels in several countries in the Middle East, Africa and South Asia," says the World Health Organization (WHO).
In total, since 2012, 27 countries have reported cases and 858 deaths[/B] have been recorded due to the infection and the associated complications it can cause.
"According to the analysis of its different genomes, the virus may have originated from bats and later transmitted to camels at some point in the distant past," the study said.
The WHO reports that 35% of patients infected with Mers-Covid virus have died, although this percentage may be lower in reality, as mild cases may have gone undetected by existing surveillance systems.
NeoCoV is a "relative" of Mers-CoV and circulates in bats. In their paper, the Chinese scientists warn that NeoCoV could cause problems if it jumps from bats to humans.
The study suggests that it is possible that NeoCoV could infect humans, but there is no evidence that it has done so so far, nor any indication of how contagious or deadly it would be. Moreover, laboratory tests suggest that NeoCoV's ability to infect human cells is minimal.
"We need to see more data confirming human infection and the relative severity before we get nervous," Professor Lawrence Young, a virologist at Warwick University, told the Independent.
"This study suggests that infecting human cells with NeoCoV is highly ineffective. What it does highlight, however, is the need to be vigilant about the transmission of coronavirus infections from animals (mainly bats) to humans. What we need to understand is that better integration of research on infectious diseases in humans and animals is needed," warns Professor Yang.
Source: in.gr
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