Researchers have analyzed genetic material collected from the Wuhan market where the first COVID-19 outbreak was detected, and have identified potential animal sources that may have contributed to the pandemic’s origins. This new study provides valuable insights into the early stages of the virus’s spread.
Tracking The Virus Back To It’s Animal Roots
Published in the journal Cell, the analysis of genetic data sampled from the Huanan seafood market in Wuhan on Jan. 1, 2020 — a day after authorities first alerted the World Health Organization to cases of a new respiratory virus — is one of just a few that attempts to trace epidemics back to their origins.
By using a method that allows researchers to find precise organisms from environmental samples as being responsible for an event, the authors showed that the animal origins of virus were likely to be raccoon dogs, civet cats and bamboo rats. These animals were probably introduced to the market during late November ended 2019, and that can be a point of contract tracing the source is known for outbreaks.
The researchers hope that by identifying the sub-populations of these animals at contributed to spreading the virus into humans in this case they will be able to provide insight into where in nature, or “natural reservoir”, can we find the common natural habitat where the virus circulates. The raccoon dogs that were sold at the market, for example, belonged to a sub-species that is found primarily in southern China. This information could be useful to direct future research aimed at sampling bats and other potential animal reservoirs in these areas.
The Great COVID-19 Origin Debate Shift
The new genetic study lends support to the idea that COVID-19 originated in wildlife, much less likely than their accidental or deliberate release from a biological research laboratory has fueled controversy and politically charged debate.
The findings “move the needle more toward an animal origin” for the pandemic, said Mark Woolhouse, a professor of infectious disease epidemiology at the University of Edinburgh. But he added the study was not definitive, and it remained unclear how the virus arrived at the Wuhan market.
In 2021, a team of experts convened by the World Health Organization determined it was ‘extremely unlikely’ that the coronavirus causing COVID-19 had escaped from a lab, but WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said at that same time that conclusions were still premature. The latest study reinforces that animal origins concept, but the debate is likely to continue as scientists piece together the full story of how COVID-19 emerged.
Conclusion
Genetic analysis of samples taken from the Wuhan market shows possible animal sources for COVID-19, bolstering arguments over its animal origin. The study is preliminary but provides a crucial exploration of possible explanations — and a reason for further research, as well as end-to-end collaboration, to identify the origins of the virus in order to improve outbreak preparedness. Knowing where in nature COVID-19 and other coronaviruses can establish a reservoir helps give the world an upper hand against emerging infectious diseases.
