The HKU5-CoV-2 virus, discovered in bats in China, is closely related to MERS and may be just a mutation away from infecting humans, researchers warn. A study by Washington State University revealed how the virus interacts with human cells, highlighting its potential for infection. The virus currently spreads in bats, but concerns grow over unregulated wildlife trade in China that might facilitate future spillover events. Scientists stress monitoring and studying HKU5-CoV-2 to prevent another pandemic scenario.
Adding to the controversy is the fact HKU5 was first documented in bats by researchers from the Chinese lab where Covid is feared to have leaked from.
Researchers collected the HKU5-CoV-2 strain from a small subset of hundreds of bats swabbed across southern and eastern regions of China. It is currently only spreading in bats - but experts fear unregulated wildlife trade in China raises risk of spillover events.
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