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A new coronavirus is discovered in bats in Brazil

2026-09-16 09:16:07Kosova&Bota SHKRUAR NGA REDAKSIA VOX

A new coronavirus is discovered in bats in Brazil

An international team of scientists has discovered a previously unknown coronavirus in a Parnell's mustachioed bat in Brazil. The new virus was identified after genome sequencing and belongs to the betacoronavirus group, which also includes SARS-CoV-2, which causes COVID-19, and MERS-CoV.

According to the researchers, the newly discovered virus belongs to a separate subgenus and is relatively distant in evolution from SARS-CoV-2. The discovery is particularly noteworthy due to the presence of a furin cleavage site in the spike protein, an element that is important for how some coronaviruses infect cells.

SARS-CoV-2 has such a site, known as the FCS, and its presence has been linked to the virus's high ability to enter human cells. For a time, the fact that similar structures had not been identified in several SARS-related coronaviruses in bats was used as an argument in discussions about the possibility of a laboratory origin of COVID-19.

However, scientist Markus Hoffmann, who has studied the role of the furin cleavage site in SARS-CoV-2, points out that the new discovery shows that such structures can occur naturally in different coronaviruses.

"Although the current study does not provide direct evidence or refute the natural origin of SARS-CoV-2 with respect to the polybasic cleavage site in the spike protein, it highlights that polybasic cleavage sites in spike proteins may occur naturally in different coronaviruses," Hoffmann said.

He also referred to the debate over the origins of the pandemic, noting that the COVID-19 outbreak began in Wuhan, a city where a laboratory specializing in the study of bat coronaviruses was located. According to him, these circumstances may raise questions, but do not in themselves constitute evidence that SARS-CoV-2 was genetically modified.

"To me, at this time there is no convincing evidence that SARS-CoV-2 was created in a laboratory," he stated.

Meanwhile, it remains unclear whether the new coronavirus discovered in Brazil can infect humans. Researchers need to conduct further research to determine whether its spike protein is able to bind to receptors on human cells and whether there is potential for transmission from bats to humans.

Experts point out that over the past 25 years, many coronaviruses have been identified in bats, but only a small fraction of them have proteins capable of binding strongly to receptors on human cells. For this reason, the new discovery does not mean that the virus currently poses a threat to humans, while further studies will determine its characteristics and risk.


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