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Does the corona virus come from a laboratory? Virologist Drosten talks about “conspicuous” observation

2022-02-09T11:46:24.987Z


Does the corona virus come from a laboratory? Virologist Drosten talks about “conspicuous” observation Created: 2022-02-09 12:35 p.m By: Martina Lippl Charité virologist Christian Drosten. © Christophe Gateau/dpa Where did the coronavirus come from? From the lab or is it a natural phenomenon? In an interview, virologist Christian Drosten explains current findings on virus experiments in Wuhan.


Does the corona virus come from a laboratory?

Virologist Drosten talks about “conspicuous” observation

Created: 2022-02-09 12:35 p.m

By: Martina Lippl

Charité virologist Christian Drosten.

© Christophe Gateau/dpa

Where did the coronavirus come from?

From the lab or is it a natural phenomenon?

In an interview, virologist Christian Drosten explains current findings on virus experiments in Wuhan.

Munich – Researchers have been looking for the origin of the Sars-CoV-2 coronavirus since the beginning of the corona pandemic.

Many questions are still open.

There are various hypotheses: Most scientists assume that the coronavirus was transmitted from bats to humans via an intermediate host animal.

In the report by the World Health Organization (WHO) in March 2021, this hypothesis is also considered "probable to very probable".

The WHO left open which animal it could be.

Another thesis: The corona virus originated in the laboratory in Wuhan.

This explosive, but also well-known laboratory theory is currently boiling up.

A Hamburg physicist recently fueled the theory of the laboratory accident* again.

Origin of the Sars-CoV-2 coronavirus: Drosten considers its origin in the animal kingdom to be more likely

The Berlin virologist Christian Drosten got caught between the fronts in the debate about the origin.

Drosten does not want to rule out the laboratory hypothesis – but still considers it very unlikely.

In an interview with the

Süddeutsche Zeitung (SZ)

, Drosten explains his position, talks about new findings from Wuhan and defends himself against allegations of deception about the origin of the pandemic.

It is now known that experiments were carried out in a high-security laboratory in Wuhan (China*) to give viruses new properties.

According to Drosten, one thing in these published project reports was “surprising”.

But even these new findings are, in his opinion, no evidence of an unnatural origin of Sars-CoV-2.

Published project reports would show that “things were done in Wuhan that could be described as dangerous.

It really didn't have to be.

But the Sars-CoV-2 virus could not have come out of it, ”said Drosten.

“They have built new properties into bat viruses, but not those that could be considered the predecessors of Sars-CoV-2.

The Institute of Virology in Wuhan has therefore carried out "gain-of-function experiments" in a project of the US NGO "Ecohealth Alliance".

“Bat viruses were incorporated into bat viruses using genetic engineering.

It turned out that the viruses constructed in this way were able to multiply better.

It also became known that there were plans to incorporate furin cleavage sites, but this was to be done in an American laboratory and the project was not funded," said Drosten.

Origin of the corona virus: What is the truth of the laboratory hypothesis?

The so-called furin cleft is a feature of Sars-CoV-2 that enables the pathogen to infect cells in the respiratory tract.

The characteristic does not actually occur in the group of corona viruses, which also includes Sars-CoV-2.

With other corona viruses, however, Drosten explains.

For supporters of the laboratory hypothesis, this furin column in the surface protein of the coronavirus is an indication that Sars-CoV-2 must come from the laboratory.

This cleavage site was built.

Drosten: Furin column no evidence of a non-natural origin of Sars-CoV-2

Virologist Drosten considers this furin column to be conspicuous, but it is "no evidence of a non-natural origin," says Christian Drosten in the

SZ

interview.

In the case of influenza, such furin fissures would constantly arise in nature.

Last year, samples from bats were examined in his laboratory.

In doing so, his team came across two specimens of Sars-related viruses in which only one mutation would be necessary, "and then the viruses would also have a furin column similar to that of Sars-CoV-2." If only such a small change in the genome necessary, one can certainly prepare for the fact that something like this also happens in nature.

According to Drosten, what was done there in the laboratories in Wuhan should have been better communicated after the first allegations.

Especially since some people in the USA* knew about these experiments.

More transparency from those responsible on site as well as with the institute in Wuhan, which cooperated with the US research institution.

The Berlin virologist finds it striking that there is still surprisingly little data on the natural origin in China.

There was a lack of studies of animals that could be considered intermediate hosts – such as civets or raccoon dogs.

 “They are known to be bred and sold in many parts of China, primarily by the fur industry.

I would actually have expected that everything would be taken apart with full enthusiasm to find the origin.

But there is surprisingly little data on this, which I find striking."

The origin of the corona virus will not be found out from the USA or Germany.

"This requires the will of China."

The WHO considers the laboratory scenario to be "extremely unlikely".

In their report, the WHO experts practically ruled out the thesis that the virus escaped – unintentionally or intentionally – from a research laboratory in Wuhan.

There is "no evidence of viruses closely related to Sars-CoV-2 in laboratories before December 2019".

However, Drosten does not want to completely rule out the laboratory hypothesis: “There is nothing that does not exist.

I don't want to rule it out, but it's just a possibility right now."

Virologist Christian Drosten from the Berlin Charité.

© Imago Images

However: For the hypothesis of laboratory origin, there would be no comparable high-quality scientific evidence as for the Sars-1 virus, which belongs to the same species as Sars-CoV-2.

Sars-1 comes from bats and passed to humans as intermediate hosts via civets and raccoon dogs, Drosten explained at the beginning of the

SZ

interview.

“The virus then probably changes in the intermediate hosts in such a way that it can also infect humans.

Omicron puzzle solved?

suspected mice

Even Chinese researchers are apparently one step further when it comes to the precursor of omicron: the precursor of omicron probably jumped from humans to mice, where it collected mutations that were conducive to infection in the host animal before it jumped back to humans.

The team led by Changshui Wei from the University of the Chinese Academy of Sciences in Beijing published this finding at the end of December.

(ml)*Merkur.de is an offer from IPPEN.MEDIA

Source: merkur

All news articles on 2022-02-09

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