The research was spearheaded by a Wuhan Institute expert, famously known as “batwoman”
A team of Chinese researchers has discovered a new coronavirus in bats that utilizes the same receptor as the COVID-19 virus to infect human cells. According to a Reuters report on Saturday, the findings highlight the need for ongoing monitoring of this pathogen to prevent potential outbreaks.
This new virus is a distinct form of the HKU5 coronavirus, which was initially found in the Japanese Pipistrelle bat in Hong Kong.
The study, which took place at the Guangzhou Laboratory, was led by Shi Zhengli, often called “batwoman” due to her extensive research on bat coronaviruses. Shi Zhengli is renowned for her work at the Wuhan Institute of Virology, which has been the subject of considerable debate regarding the source of COVID-19. While the lab leak theory has been circulating, Shi has consistently denied any responsibility on the part of the institute for the pandemic’s emergence.
In December of the previous year, the US Congressional Select Subcommittee on the Coronavirus Pandemic released a comprehensive 520-page report on the origins of the virus. The two-year investigation alleged that the Chinese government, along with certain international experts and organizations, “attempted to conceal information about the pandemic’s origins.”
Beijing has refuted the lab-leak hypothesis.
The coronavirus, which was initially identified in Wuhan, China, in December 2019, rapidly spread worldwide, resulting in over seven million deaths.