New bat strain of coronavirus discovered by researchers in Wuhan
The potential for human infection has yet to be explored
A new coronavirus has been found in bats that closely resembles the one that led to the 2020 pandemic, according to researchers from the Wuhan Institute of Virology.
The research department, located in the Chinese city where Covid-19 was first discovered, is a leading authority on the pandemic but it has previously been accused by detractors of leaking the virus.
The bat virus has a risk of animal to human transmission, although no person has been reported to have become infected with it, New York Post reports.
Information in scientific journal Cell revealed that the new virus, known as HKU5-CoV-2, makes use of human receptor SARS-CoV-2, the same strain of coronavirus behind Covid-19.
The study, led by virologist Dr Shi Zhengli, found that this latest bat strain can cause infection in cells by merging proteins throughout the human body and in other mammals.
The possibilities for human infection "remain to be investigated".
Authors of the study say the bat virus is descended from the same coronavirus line that creates Middle East respiratory syndrome (MERS), an acute and sometimes fatal respiratory illness spread by direct contact from camels to humans.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention states that MERS is most often found in countries such as Saudi Arabia, Kuwait and Qatar and others close to the Arabian Peninsula.
Last month, it was reported that an outbreak of a little-known virus called human metapneumovirus (HMPV) had overwhelmed some hospitals in China. It normally causes a mild cold-like illness, including fever, a cough, runny nose and wheezing. a and prompting people to wear face masks again.
Videos on social media appear to show medical units struggling with large numbers of patients. Parents were seen holding sick children amid long queues in paediatric care late at night.
Many drew similarities with the early dark days of the Covid pandemic five years ago from its start in the city of Wuhan.