“All the hypotheses on the origin of the covid remain on the table”said the WHO chief on Friday, stressing that China, where the first cases had been reported, had not provided all the information to the organization. “We continue to ask China and any other country with information on the origin of the COVVI-19 to share them openly”continued Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, after the presentation of an expert report to AFP.
Two main scenarios are still debated to date: that of a natural origin of the virus, by transmission to humans via a wild animal, and that of an accident in a virology laboratory. Long marginalized, this second hypothesis insistently amounts to debates.
In Wuhan, where a laboratory specialized in the study of coronaviruses is located, research on viruses close to Sars-Cov-2 had been conducted for several years. At the time, some international projects planned to modify these pathogens experimentally in order to study their virulence.
A highly political file
Troubling technical elements observed in the structure of SARS-COV-2, such as a particular site known as “furine”, have led some virologists to consider that accidental manipulation was not to be excluded, recalled in our columns Doctor Martine Perez last May.
No animal carrier of the virus having been identified
If the thesis of a natural origin remains supported by the Chinese authorities, it is based on increasingly fragile bases, no animals carrying the virus having been identified, despite tens of thousands of samples made in domestic and wild fauna. In addition, the first human strains of the virus were very homogeneous, which is not usual in the case of a classic zoonosis, where greater genetic diversity is generally observed at the beginning of human transmission.
Several institutions, such as the National Academy of Medicine, the American Congress or the intelligence services of various countries, have published reports in recent months which, without definitively slicing, bring scientific and technical arguments favorable to the track of a laboratory incident. Beijing has always refused to unveil its data. And although 4 years have passed researchers insist on the importance of knowing the origin of the pandemic, if only to strengthen biological security.
If the truth is not yet established, the file remains sensitive and highly political. WHO’s reiterated call to full and whole international cooperation recalls that, for many experts, the issue goes beyond scientific knowledge: it engages collective responsibility in the face of upcoming pandemics.
