Wuhan market not virus’ origin: study

A new study suggests the potentially fatal coronavirus did not originate in Huanan Seafood Wholesale Market in Wuhan.

A security guard stands outside the Huanan Seafood Wholesale Market. Picture: AFP

A new study conducted by a team of Chinese researchers suggests the potentially fatal coronavirus did not originate in Huanan Seafood Wholesale Market in Wuhan.

Led by researchers from Xishuangbanna Tropical Botanical Garden of Chinese Academy of Sciences and the Chinese Institute of Brain Research, the study found the disease, which has killed more than 2400 people worldwide, may have originated elsewhere.

“Tracing back to the first identified COVID-19 patient on 1 December, SARS-Cov-2 has been circulated in humans for more than two months,” the study said.

“However, it is unclear whether the Huanan market was the birthplace of the virus, and how it has been transmitted and spread subsequently.”

Data showed that while the disease spread rapidly in the Huanan Seafood Wholesale Market, there were two sudden population expanses of the disease between December 8 and January 6.

“We suggest that SARS-CoV-2 may have already circulated widely among humans in Wuhan before December 2019, probably beginning in mid to late November,” the researchers said.

“The crowded market boosted SARS-CoV-2 rapid circulation … and spread it to the whole city in early December 2019.

“The Huanan market has not been confirmed as the single source of SARS-CoV-2 transmission to humans and other possible original sources of SARS-CoV-2 have not been identified in Wuhan yet.”

The research comes as the number of confirmed cases of coronavirus reaches 78,979.

The World Health Organisation (WHO) is concerned about the number of cases with no clear epidemiological link, although the total number of cases outside China remains relatively small.

Chinese President Xi Jinping has been quoted as saying China’s measures to deal with the coronavirus outbreak have been effective, but the battle is still at a crucial stage.