Bats in Thailand were discovered with a new coronavirus that resembles what causes COVID-19, the scientists said.
The newly identified virus known as RacCS203 was found in the blood of five horseshoe bats kept in an artificial cave in a wildlife sanctuary in eastern Thailand, according to a study on Tuesday in Nature Communications.
Researchers led by Chulalongkorn University in Bangkok conducted the genomic sequencing of the new virus.
The research determined that it shares 91.5% of the genetic code of Sars-CoV-2, which is the virus that causes COVID-19.
It is also very similar to another coronavirus known as RmYN02, which is found in bats in Yunnan, China, the researchers said.
But the researchers said the new virus had differences in its peak protein, making it impossible to infect human cells.
However, antibodies in the blood of infected bats and other pangolins were able to neutralize the Sars-CoV-2 virus.
The researchers said the discovery of infected bats indicates that coronaviruses are more widespread in animals across Asia than was previously known – and studying more creatures may discover the origins of the pandemic.
“We need to do more surveillance on animals,” Professor Lin-Fa Wang of the University of Singapore told the BBC. “To find the real source, surveillance work needs to go beyond the border with China.”