Wildlife trade, not bats, likely moved the ancestors of SARS-CoV-2 to humans

A landmark study shows that bat viruses closely related to SARS-CoV-1 and SARS-CoV-2 emerged far from outbreak sites, pointing to the wildlife trade, not natural bat movement, as the most plausible route into human populations. Study: The recency and geographical origins of the bat viruses ancestral to SARS-CoV and SARS-CoV-2. Image Credit: All-stock-photos / Shutterstock A new study by an international team of researchers led by the University of California, San Diego School of Medicine highlights a vital role of wildlife trade in triggering the emergence of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) in humans. The findings are published in the journal…