How new bat virus is different from Covid 19? All you need to know about HKU5-CoV2

A new bat virus, HKU5-CoV2, has been found in China triggering a wave of panic globally.

The Covid-19 pandemic had brought the world to a stand still. The SARS-CoV-2 spread like wildfire in 2019 claiming millions of lives and creating a dreadful atmosphere. As the world still reels from its side effects, a new bat virus HKU5-CoV2 has been found in China’s Wuhan Institute of Virology. As soon as the news surfaced about the discovery, it did trigger a panic button with questions looming about a potential pandemic, its severity, human infection rate etc. Reportedly, this new bat virus has the same pathway as Covid-19 that is used to infect human, ie, it is capable of binding to angiotensin converting enzyme (ACE2) reception in human cells.

The latest discovery, identified by team of Chinese virologists led by the “batwoman” Shi Zhengli, is a new lineage of the HKU5 coronavirus first identified in the Japanese pipistrelle bat in Hong Kong. The researchers found that when the virus was isolated from bat samples it could infect human cells as well as artificially grown masses of cell or tissue that resembled miniaturised respiratory or intestinal organs.

Difference Between HKU5-CoV2 and SARS-CoV 2?

Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) initiated the pandemic in 2019 worldwide. It causes moderate flu like symptoms, sever pneumonia, multi-organ failure and more. It spread vie droplets, direct contact and was very contagious. It has also undergone several mutations and continues to do so. However, every mutation has different transmissibility rate and immunity evasive nature.

On the other hand, this new found bat virus is initially found in bats in Hing Kong. Because HKU5-CoV-2 is member of Merbecovirus of beacoronaviruses unlike SARS-CoV2 which belongs to Sarbecovirus subgenus, it is genetically different from Covid-19, reported Etimes.

As per lab tests, it does have a potential but so far, the new bat virus has not been found to infect humans whilst Covid-19 virus extensively infected humans. However, more research is required to determine the HKU5-CoV-2’s ability to infect humans.

As reported by Reuters, Dr. Michael Osterholm, an infectious disease expert at the University of Minnesota said there is a lot of immunity in the population to similar SARS viruses compared with 2019, which may reduce the pandemic risk. The study itself noted that the virus has significantly less binding affinity to human ACE2 than SARS-CoV-2, and other suboptimal factors for human adaptation suggest the “risk of emergence in human populations should not be exaggerated.”

The new virus comes from the merbecovirus subgenus, which also includes the virus that causes Middle East respiratory syndrome (Mers), the Hong Kong based South China Morning Post reported. Different experts has so advised not to panic. More research is underway to completely determine its affect on humans.

(With agency inputs)