A team of scientists say it is "beyond reasonable doubt" the Covid pandemic started with infected animals.

A team of scientists say it is “beyond reasonable doubt” the Covid pandemic started with infected animals sold at a market, rather than a laboratory leak.

They were analysing hundreds of samples collected from Wuhan, China, in January 2020.

The results identify a shortlist of animals – including racoon dogs, civets and bamboo rats – as potential sources of the pandemic.

Despite even highlighting one market stall as a hotspot of both animals and coronavirus, the study cannot provide definitive proof.

The samples were collected by Chinese officials in the early stages of Covid and are one of the most scientifically valuable sources of information on the origins of the pandemic.

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Their analysis was published last year and the raw data made available to other scientists. Now a team in the US and France says they have performed even more advanced genetic analyses to peer deeper into Covid’s early days.

  • tamal3@lemmy.world
    31·
    3 months ago

    I would love to see a picture of that ONE STALL that is thought to have been a hotbed. Whoever runs that stall must be quite a character, too. Golly it’s fun to visit markets in new countries.

    Unless… a plausible alternative to my imagination is that it looks like any other open air fresh meat stall, just with more exotic flesh… And if that’s the case you can keep your photos.

    But just in case. Anyone?

    • crashfrog@sopuli.xyzEnglish
      13·
      3 months ago

      I mean you’ve seen people with COVID by now; did they look much different?

      • tamal3@lemmy.world
        1·
        3 months ago

        Huh? No, I want to see how chaotic that stall might be. I’m imagining stuff and species of all varieties.