Canberra, Oct 31 – A latest research statement from Australian national science body CSIRO confirms the Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS) virus originated in horseshoe bats from China, Xinhua news agency reported.
A research team led by Prof. Shi Zhengli from Wuhan Institute of Virology, Chinese Academy of Sciences and including CSIRO and Duke-NUS scientist Prof. Linfa Wang isolated a SARS-like coronavirus (CoV) called SL-CoV WIV1 directly from faecal samples of Chinese Horseshoe bats using a methodology developed by scientists at CSIRO’s Australian Animal Health Laboratory in Geelong, Victoria.
While researchers globally have previously used genetic sequencing to demonstrate that bats are the natural reservoirs of SARS-like CoVs, this is the first time that live virus has been successfully isolated from bats to confirm them as the origin of the virus.
“The results will help governments design more effective prevention strategies for SARS and similar epidemics,” a statement said.
The Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome coronavirus (SARS-CoV) pandemic has killed 774 people out of 8,094 infected, a case fatality ratio of almost 10 percent.
Horseshoe bats are found around the world including in Australia and play an important ecological role.
Their role in SARS-CoV transmission highlights the importance of protecting the bat’s natural environment so they are not forced into highly populated urban areas in search of food.
The latest research is published in the journal Nature.
– Bernama
