Scientists Locate Bats with Covid-like viruses In Laos

Study shows that scientists have discovered bats living in caves in Laos, that was found to be carrying a similar pathogen that experts suggest could potentially infect humans directly.

Researchers from France's Pasteur Institute and the National University of Laos reported that the viruses genetically close to the SARS-CoV-2 virus "exist in nature" among bat species in the limestone caves of northern Laos, which neighbors China.

Out of the viruses identified among the hundreds of bats tested in Vientiane Province, three were found to firmly resemble the virus that causes Covid-19, particularly in the mechanism for latching on to human cells. 

"The idea was to identify the origin of the pandemic", Marc Eloit, who leads the Pasteur Institute's pathogen discovery laboratory, told AFP. 

The team, however, after the analysis of the collected samples reported that there were still key differences between the viruses found and SARS-CoV-2. 

But he said the work was "a major step forward" in identifying the pandemic's origin, confirming the theory that the coronavirus that has spread across the world could have started with living bats. 

The authors of the study, which has been submitted to Nature for peer review, warned that their findings suggest the new viruses "seem to have the same potential for infecting humans as early strains of SARS-CoV-2". 

The discovery comes at a time when the administration of the Covid-19 vaccine continues in a better part of the globe.

The virus has killed millions since it emerged in China in late 2019, and controversy continues to swirl around where it came from.

Some experts say it is animal-driven but others have pointed to the possibility the pathogen leaked from a lab.