A group of Chinese scientists has identified a novel bat coronavirus that could potentially transmit from animals to humans. According to the South China Morning Post, the virus known as HKU5-CoV-2 was discovered to utilize the same human receptor as SARS-CoV-2, the cause of Covid-19.
The research was headed by Shi Zhengli, a famous virologist nicknamed “batwoman” for her significant work on bat coronaviruses.
The study included researchers from the Guangzhou Laboratory, Guangzhou Academy of Sciences, Wuhan University, and the Wuhan Institute of Virology, with their results published in the peer-reviewed journal Cell.
Things known about the new Bat Coronavirus
The recently identified virus is part of the merbecovirus subgenus, encompassing the Middle East respiratory syndrome (MERS) virus. It is a novel strain of the HKU5 coronavirus that was first detected in Japanese pipistrelle bats located in Hong Kong.
According to the research, HKU5-CoV-2 is capable of attaching to the human angiotensin-converting enzyme (ACE2) receptor, which is the receptor utilized by SARS-CoV-2 to invade human cells.
“The scientists stated, ‘We announce the identification and separation of a unique lineage (lineage 2) of HKU5-CoV, which is capable of using not just bat ACE2 but also human ACE2 and several mammalian ACE2 orthologs.’”
The researchers cautioned that bat merbecoviruses “present a significant risk of spilling over to humans, whether via direct transmission or through the involvement of intermediate hosts.”
