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By Giselda Vagnoni and Emilio Parodi
ROME (Reuters) – An Italian study supporting the case that the novel coronavirus was circulating outside China earlier than expected has raised doubts among some Western scientists who have called for additional testing.
An article published by the Italian Cancer Institute (INT) describes the presence of neutralizing anti-SARS-CoV-2 antibodies in blood collected from healthy patients in Italy in October last year during a test of lung cancer screening.
If the data is correct, it would change the story of the pandemic and raise the question of when and where the virus appeared. It was first identified in the central Chinese city of Wuhan in December.
But several scientists interviewed by Reuters said further investigation was needed.
“These results are worth reporting, but they should above all be seen as a follow-up with further testing,” said Mark Pagel, professor at the School of Biological Sciences at the University of Reading in the UK.
“All of the patients in the study were asymptomatic although most were between 55 and 65 and smoke. This would normally be a high-risk group for COVID-19, so it’s surprising why all of the patients were asymptomatic. “
A co-author of the study said he and his colleagues are planning new research and called on scientists around the world to contribute.
The World Health Organization said the novel coronavirus and COVID-19, the respiratory illness it causes, were unknown before the Wuhan outbreak was reported. But he said the possibility that the virus may have “circulated silently elsewhere” cannot be excluded.
There have been at least 55,573,000 reported infections and 1,336,000 reported deaths caused by COVID-19 worldwide since the virus was first detected in China.
“UNEXPECTED DETECTION”
China believes that the Italian study shows that the search for the origin of the virus is an ongoing process that may involve many countries.
“China will continue to work with the rest of the international community to contribute to global cooperation in the fight against COVID-19 and other viruses,” Zhao Lijian, spokesperson for the Chinese Foreign Ministry said on Tuesday. Beijing.
Italy’s first COVID-19 patient was detected on February 21 in a small town near Milan, in the northern Lombardy region. But results from Italian researchers show that 11.6% of the 959 healthy volunteers enrolled in the cancer screening trial between September 2019 and March 2020 had signs of having already encountered the SARS-CoV-2 coronavirus, the most well before February.
Another anti-SARS-CoV-2 antibody test was performed by the University of Siena for the same research document, titled “Unexpected detection of anti-SARS-CoV-2 antibodies in the pre-pandemic period in Italy “.
He showed that in six cases the antibodies were able to kill SARS-CoV-2. Four of the cases dated back to October 2019, meaning the patients had been infected in September.
“This number (six) is fully consistent with test errors and statistical noise. For these reasons, it seems to me that the evidence to support such an extraordinary claim is not strong enough,” said Enrico Bucci, professor biologist. assistant to the Temple of Philadelphia University.
“Much ado about nothing,” Antonella Viola, professor of general pathology at the University of Padua, told Reuters.
“ SERIOUS INDEED PROBLEM ”
The two Italian scientists said the antibody test was designed in-house and had never been validated by other researchers in a peer review.
What was also noticeable was the very high seroprevalence in the study population, they said, referring to the percentage of people who may have been exposed to the virus.
“For there to be an epidemic (albeit apparently asymptomatic) of this magnitude in Italy a year before the current pandemic which goes unnoticed would indeed be a serious problem,” said Stephen Griffin, associate professor at Leeds University. .
Most of the scientific skepticism centers on the so-called specificity of antibody tests, which, if not perfect, could reveal the presence of antibodies to other diseases.
“Other recent reports have shown that seasonal coronaviruses can cause cross-neutralizing antibodies,” said Jonathan Stoye, group leader at the Francis Crick Institute.
“I think we need a really conclusive demonstration that these samples pick up the COVID-19 virus and that these antibodies weren’t actually triggered by another virus,” Andrew Preston, reader of microbial pathogenesis, told Reuters at the University of Bath.
Preston said he was surprised that these requirements were not necessary for the publication of a research paper.
“But it’s perfectly possible to go and do those extra tests and come back and show it,” he added.
The scientific director of INT and co-author of the study plans a further investigation of the clinical history of the patients in the study.
“We need to understand if they were showing symptoms of illness. Where they had gone, if they had any contact with China,” Giovanni Apolone told Reuters, calling on his colleagues around the world to “open their databases and to conduct retrospective research “.
(Reporting by Emilio Parodi, Josephine Mason and Giselda Vagnoni. Additional reporting by Roxanne Liu in Beijing. Written by Giselda Vagnoni; Editing by Nick Macfie)
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