Pangolin coronavirus can infect humans

Although SARS-CoV-2 is believed to have originated from the bat coronavirus, its exact evolutionary path is still

remains a mystery.Unraveling its history is challenging because there are likely many undiscovered bat coronaviruses. Because of the differences between the bat coronavirus and SARS-CoV-2, it is believed that it may have been transmitted to humans through at least one other species.

In his study published in NatureCommunications, the scientists compared the structures of the spike proteins found in SARS-CoV-2, the most similar currently identified RaTG13 bat coronavirus, and a coronavirus isolated from Malay pangolins that were seized by authorities after they were smuggled into China. It turned out that the pangolin virus is able to bind to receptors of both pangolin and humans. This is in contrast to the bats coronavirus, which cannot effectively bind to human or pangolin receptors.

By testing whether the spike protein of a given virus canbind to cell receptors of different species, we can see if the virus could theoretically infect that species. We showed two key points. First, this bat virus is unlikely to infect pangolins. And secondly, the pangolin virus can potentially infect people.

Anthony Wrobel, co-lead author of the article

The team used cryo-electron microscopy to reveal in detail the structure of the pangolin coronavirus spike protein, which is responsible for binding and infecting cells. 

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