Coronavirus From Snakes to Humans

The new coronavirus may have ‘jumped’ to humans from snakes, Yes Snakes! the Chinese krait and the Chinese cobra. A new study has been shown that snakes may be the main source of the newly discovered coronavirus. The study analyzed the genetic sequence of the new virus. Then compared it with the genetic sequences of more than 200 other coronaviruses from around the world that infect various animals. The researchers analyzed the genetic sequence of Covid-19 to look for patterns in the genetic code that may reveal the host that the virus infects. They considered several potential hosts, including hedgehogs, marmots, bats, birds, humans, and snakes.

The researchers used an analysis of the protein codes favored by Covid-19 and compared it to the protein codes from coronaviruses found in different animal hosts, like birds, snakes, marmots, hedgehogs, bats, and humans. Surprisingly, they found that the protein codes in the Covid-19 are most similar to those used in snakes.

The authors further found. That the viral RNA coding sequence of Corona spike protein, which forms the “crown” of the virus particle. That recognizes the receptor on a host cell. This indicates that the bat virus might have mutated before infecting people. Snakes often hunt for bats in wild. Reports indicate that snakes were sold in the local seafood market in Wuhan, raising the possibility that the Covid-19 might have jumped from the host species — bats — to snakes and then to humans at the beginning of this coronavirus outbreak. However, still more animal studies will be needed to confirm the findings, the authors said.