New coronavirus discovered in Thailand of bats similar to COVID-19

Bats in Thailand have been discovered with a new coronavirus that closely matches the one that causes COVID-19, scientists have said.

The newly identified virus known as RacCS203 was found in the blood of five horseshoe bats kept in an artificial cave at a wildlife sanctuary in eastern Thailand, according to a study published Tuesday in Nature Communications. .

Researchers led by Chulalongkorn University in Bangkok performed genomic sequencing of the new virus.

Research has determined that it shares 91.5% of the genetic code for Sars-CoV-2, which is the virus that causes COVID-19.

It is also very similar to another coronavirus known as RmYN02, which is found in bats in Yunnan, China, researchers said.

But the researchers said the new virus showed differences in its spike protein, which prevented it from infecting human cells.

However, antibodies in the blood of infected bats and other pangolins were able to neutralize the Sars-CoV-2 virus.

Researchers said the discovery of the infected bats indicates that coronaviruses are more prevalent in animals in Asia than previously known – and studying more creatures could reveal the origins of the pandemic.

“We need to do more surveillance in animals,” University of Singapore professor Lin-Fa Wang told the BBC. “In order to find the true origin, the surveillance work must go beyond the Chinese border.”