[ad_1]
- The World Health Organization’s delayed investigation into the origin of the novel coronavirus in China has sparked controversy, but scientists still expect the investigation to yield results.
- WHO and China have agreed on how to proceed with the search for the origin of the coronavirus, but the first phase will involve Chinese scientists who will do the initial work in Wuhan.
- Experts believe it is still possible to identify the animal species that transmitted the virus to humans and to determine when that happened. Genetic testing of samples and antibodies could still tell the full story of the original outbreak, even a year after the first human cases were officially documented.
About a year ago, the first patients in Wuhan, China were diagnosed with pneumonia of unknown origin in what would become the current coronavirus pandemic. We still don’t know exactly how the infection reached humans, but scientists have proven that the virus passed from animals to humans at the start of the pandemic. China has not been exactly transparent about the source of the virus and has not allowed international experts to visit Ground Zero and launch investigations into the origin of the pandemic. But the country has signed an agreement with the World Health Organization (WHO) for an official investigation into the Wuhan epidemic.
Knowing what really happened and how the virus reached humans is critical to managing the disease, future treatments and vaccine research, as well as preventative measures that could prevent the same species from infecting them. humans with a different pathogen. Having a clear picture of where COVID-19 came from is not about blaming China or any other country. Although China has attempted to change the origin story several times so far, suggesting the pandemic may not have started in Wuhan.
Time is not wasted and experts involved in similar investigations believe the WHO can get to the bottom of this, despite the delays.
Black Friday 2020 is here
Amazon’s Black Friday 2020 sale has started – here are all of the hottest deals yet! Price:buy now 
Available on Amazon, BGR may receive a commission
The WHO recently revealed that the investigation will have two phases. During the first stage, the actual WHO team will not be present on the ground in Wuhan and will only look at data provided by Chinese researchers. But experts involved in the SARS and MERS investigations said National Geographic that all hope is not lost and that the source of the disease can be discovered.
The WHO team that investigated SARS in 2003 arrived in China almost three months after the first case and found the source within weeks. Genetic tracing is the secret to these discoveries, and it will help scientists find out which animals transmitted SARS-CoV-2 to humans. Technological advances since 2003 should make the job even easier.
Planning for the investigation began in February, WHO officials said. National Geographic. The organization also explained that it could not have started research sooner, as its first missions to China had prioritized stopping the spread of the virus.
Experts will want to examine biological samples such as blood that have been collected from hospitals in Wuhan to determine when and where the virus is spreading. This type of investigation could provide crucial information on where the virus is spreading. Testing samples could help officials set a timeline for the outbreak and determine the type of people most likely to be infected initially and the type of animals they were likely to interact with.
Scientists will also need to test samples of blood, urine, and feces from various animals, such as bats, pangolins, civets, and any other mammals discovered along the way that may provide clues to the infection.
Experts who spoke National Geographic also said it makes sense for Chinese scientists to take the legwork and assume that China has already been a part of it.
Besides China, researchers will also need to study neighboring countries, including Myanmar, Laos and Vietnam. It has been widely speculated that the coronavirus emerged from a bat, and the animals are not only found in China.
The Wuhan market may have been seen as the initial source of infection. The WHO recently said that “it remains unclear whether the market is a source of contamination, acts as an amplifier of human-to-human transmission, or a combination of these factors.” The WHO mission plan reveals that nearly 1,200 specimens were collected from the market, which had 653 vendors who traded all kinds of animals. Of the 336 animals sampled, none tested positive for the virus. But 8% of the environmental swabs that included drains and sewage carried the virus. The report also notes that a spring survey showed that 14% of Wuhan’s cats tested positive for the virus. Meanwhile, the only animal known to transmit the coronavirus to humans is mink, which is also widely farmed in China.
The search for the animal could start in Wuhan but will likely expand throughout Hubei province, Ian Lipkin speculated. He said he “wouldn’t be surprised if we found out it was in humans before the Wuhan outbreak was detected in 2019.” Lipkin is the director of the Center for Infection and Immunity at Columbia University. His team has been involved in tracing the MERS coronavirus to camels in the Middle East by testing antibodies to see where the disease has circulated.
Chris Smith started writing about gadgets as a hobby, and before he even knew it he was sharing his take on tech with readers around the world. Whenever he doesn’t write about gadgets, he miserably fails to walk away from them, although he desperately tries. But that’s not necessarily a bad thing.
[ad_2]
Source link