Chinese researchers have discovered a Covid-like virus in bats that could spread to humans.
Researchers at the Wuhan Institute of Virology in China say the new virus enters cells using the same gateway as the virus that causes Covid-19.
HKU5-CoV-2 does not enter human cells as readily as SARS-CoV-2, which causes Covid-19, however, it uses the same cell-surface protein - ACE2 to allow it to enter human cells.
It infects cells by binding to a protein found in humans and other mammals and is reportedly closely related to the coronavirus family that causes Middle East Respiratory Syndrome (MERS).
HKU5-CoV-2, does not enter human cells as readily as SARS-CoV-2 (Stock Image)
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MERS has been found in only around 2,600 people worldwide from 2012 to 2024, killing about 36 per cent of those infected.
According to the World Health Organisation, the majority of cases were in Saudi Arabia.
In experiments, HKU5-CoV-2 infected human cells with high levels of ACE2 in models of human airways and intestines.
Researchers identified antibodies and antiviral drugs that would be able to target the new virus.
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The findings also raised the possibility that the bat virus could spread from animals to humans, researchers said in their published paper in the journal Cell.
The discovery of the virus, which has not been detected in humans but rather identified in a lab, caused a reaction experts called “overblown”.
Dr Michael Osterholm, an infectious disease expert at the University of Minnesota, said there is lots of immunity in our population to similar viruses compared with 2019 when the pandemic began.
However, the revelations have lifted shares of vaccine makers, with Moderna Inc rising 6.6 per cent on Friday and Novavax Inc. rising 7.8 per cent.
The findings also raised the possibility that the bat virus could spread from animals to humans
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Pfizer Inc’s Covid’s vaccine partner BioNTech SE rose by 5.1 per cent.
The Wuhan institute is known for its research on bat coronavirus. They were at the centre of controversy after theories emerged that Covid-19 leaked from the lab, and sparked the global pandemic.
They have denied working with any viruses that could have started the pandemic.
