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A competing hypothesis that the virus leaks from laboratories such as specialized virology laboratories in Wuhan in some way is considered “extremely impossible.”
The UN scientist responsible for the mission warned on Wednesday that although time is running out, the search for the origin of the new coronavirus pandemic, which has caused millions of deaths and economic paralysis, is still at a standstill.
The preliminary report of the independent international expert team sent by the World Health Organization to China in January concluded that the SARS-CoV-2 virus was most likely transmitted from bats to humans through intermediate animals.
A competing hypothesis that the virus leaks from laboratories such as specialized virology laboratories in Wuhan in some way is considered “extremely impossible.”
However, in a comment published in the journal Nature, 11 of the 17 scientists on the mission stated that this was just “the first step in a process that has stalled.”
They wrote: “The search for the origin of SARS-CoV-2 is at a critical juncture.”
“The window of opportunity for this critical investigation is rapidly closing.”
As the evidence disappears or is destroyed, it becomes more difficult to track the biological traces of the disease that first appeared in Wuhan at the end of 2019.
The statement was issued less than two weeks after the WHO urged China to hand over information about the earliest Covid-19 cases in order to resume investigations.
Experts say this should include data on 174 cases of Covid identified in December 2019, which China failed to share during the initial investigation.
The researchers said at the time that they “have agreed” that the second phase of the study will fill this gap.
But China refuted the WHO’s request earlier this month, saying that the January survey was sufficient and that the motive for requesting more data was politics rather than science.
The WHO also emphasized on Wednesday that the international expert report released in March in coordination with its Chinese counterparts listed some studies that should be carried out, and insisted that there is no reason to wait.
“We encourage all parties to conduct these studies,” WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus told reporters at the Geneva headquarters of the United Nations health agency.
Other WHO experts emphasized at the press conference that there is no need to wait for another international visit to China and then go deep into the many further studies needed there, and pointed out that there are many capable Chinese scientists who can complete this work.
“There are currently no obstacles to these studies, and Chinese colleagues do not need WHO to hold hands in this process,” agreed Michael Ryan, WHO’s director of emergency situations.
“In fact, many of our Chinese colleagues did report that these studies are ongoing, and we are very much looking forward to receiving the data and reports.”
Beijing is particularly shy about the idea that the virus may have escaped from the Wuhan virology laboratory.
On Tuesday, U.S. intelligence agencies submitted to President Joe Biden a report on animal transmission and “laboratory leaks” hypotheses. The results of the survey were described as uncertain.
The Nature article pointed out that the current data does not support laboratory leaks.
None of the six priorities for further research mentioned after the January mission mentioned this possibility, which was criticized for lack of transparency and access.
Instead, scientists emphasized the need to track the earliest Covid cases through disease reports and antibody surveys inside and outside China.
They also called for further investigations into wild animal farms and wild bats.
They said: “As the SARS-CoV-2 antibody weakens, collecting more samples and testing people who may have been in contact before December 2019 will have diminishing returns.”
They added that many wild animal farms interested in conducting research have been closed and their livestock have been killed.
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