New Delhi: NeoCov, the new type of coronavirus, has been detected among bats in South Africa. Scientists from the Wuhan University in China said NeoCov can penetrate human cells in the same way as SARS-CoV-2 or COVID-19.
While research claims it has latent ability to mutate, the World Health Organisation has said its potential needs further clarity.
What is NeoCov
NeoCov is not a new variant of COVID-19 but a new type of coronavirus. NeoCov is associated with Middle East Respiratory Syndrome MERS-COV, a similar kind of SARS-CoV-2 virus. “It is only one mutation away from becoming dangerous for humans,” researchers said in a paper posted on preprint website bioRxiv, and not peer-reviewed yet.
The Chinese scientists said that they “unexpectedly found that NeoCoV and its close relative, PDF-2180-CoV, can efficiently use some types of bat Angiotensin-converting enzyme 2 (ACE2) and, less favourably, human ACE2 for entry”.
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