A research team in China has discovered a novel bat coronavirus that can be transmitted to humans, similar to the COVID-19 virus.
According to Chinese media reports, a research team led by Research Institute Shi Zhengli from the Guangzhou laboratory announced in a paper published in the journal Cell on the 18th that they have discovered a new HKU5 coronavirus lineage called HKU5-CoV-2 in bats. The new virus is a lineage of the HKU5 coronavirus, which was first identified in Hong Kong bats. The study also involved the Guangzhou Institute of Science, Wuhan University, and the Wuhan Institute of Virology.
The research team noted that the new bat virus (HKU5-CoV-2) uses the same cell surface proteins as the SARS-CoV-2 virus, which causes COVID-19, to infiltrate human cells. However, they explained that it does not enter human cells immediately like the COVID-19 virus.
Research Institute Shi Zhengli, who led the study, is known as the "batwoman" for her expertise in bat viruses. She conducted related research at the Wuhan Institute of Virology, which has been implicated as a potential origin of the COVID-19 pandemic. Allegations persist from the United States and others that the COVID-19 virus leaked from the Wuhan Institute of Virology.