The advisors of the World Health Organization urged on Saturday China to make public all the information related to the origin of the pandemic COVID-19 after new findings were briefly shared in an international database used to track pathogens.
Earlier this year, Chinese scientists briefly uploaded new SARS-CoV-2 virus sequences to the GISAID database, as well as additional genomic data based on samples taken at a Wuhan live animal market in 2020, allowing researchers to from other countries consult them, according to the statement of the WHO Scientific Advisory Group on the Origins of Novel Pathogens (SAGO).
The footage suggested that raccoon dogs were on the market and that they may also have been infected with the coronavirus, providing a new clue in the chain of transmission that eventually reached humans.
Access to information was subsequently restricted “apparently to allow further updates to the data” by the Chinese Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).
WHO officials discussed the matter with their Chinese colleagues, who explained that the new data was to be used to update a preprinted 2022 study. The Chinese CDC plans to resubmit the work to the scientific journal Nature for publication, according to the notice.
WHO officials say this information, while inconclusive, represents a new lead in the investigation of the origins of COVID and should have been shared immediately.
“These data do not provide a definitive answer to the question of how the pandemic started, but each piece of information is important to get us closer to that answer,” WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said on Friday. “This data could – and should – have been shared three years ago.”
“We continue to call on China to be transparent in sharing data and to carry out the necessary investigations and share the results.”, he added.
The WHO commissioned SAGO to continue investigating the origins of the pandemic, which killed nearly 7 million people worldwide.
The Huanan Seafood Wholesale Market in Wuhan was closed by Chinese authorities after the novel coronavirus emerged in the city in late 2019. The market has since been a focus of study into whether the virus had infected several other species before jumping to humans.
The WHO and other scientists have also said they cannot rule out the possibility that the virus emerged from a high-security laboratory in Wuhan that studies dangerous pathogens. China denies any such link.
Source: Reuters
Source: Gestion
Ricardo is a renowned author and journalist, known for his exceptional writing on top-news stories. He currently works as a writer at the 247 News Agency, where he is known for his ability to deliver breaking news and insightful analysis on the most pressing issues of the day.
