Bats are likely source of SARS virus

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Bats are likely source of SARS virus

Postby tncaver » Oct 31, 2013 3:20 pm

Read about Sars discovery in Chinese Horseshoe bats.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-24750897
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Re: Bats are likely source of SARS virus

Postby BillKane7 » Sep 11, 2014 5:16 pm

Interesting. It looks as though the virus found in the Chinese Horseshoe bat is 95% similar to the one found in humans. This article http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sciencetech/ ... y-ill.html states that the virus found in the bats could be transmitted directly to humans but then it says the current theory is that it went from bats at the market, to civet cats, and then to humans. Interesting read.

I'm glad that the article doesn't just advocate wiping out bats to prevent sars, I was worried that would be the first suggestion when I went to read it.

According to the researchers, the finding highlights the importance of protecting the bat’s natural environment so they are not forced into highly populated urban areas in search of food.


I'm also still slightly confused by the apparent contradiction in the article regarding bats vs civet cats as the source. Perhaps they simply mean that the root of the virus was the but while the civet cat is a suspected intermediary between bats and humans. Again, interesting read. And I realize this an older article but I'm reading most of these threads for the first time. Sorry for any inadvertent necroposting.
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