Warning over Russian 'bat virus' which could 'resist Covid vaccines and infect humans'
dailyrecord.co.ukA new virus that has been discovered in certain bats in Russia is causing concern among scientists. Experts have warned that Russian horseshoe bats have been found to carry a new virus called 'Khosta-2', which is categorised as a sarbecovirus - the same kind as Covid-19.Covid has infected over 600 million people all over the world since the pandemic began, but there are now warnings that this new virus could be resistant to our vaccinations.Khosta-2 displays some "troubling traits" according to a study in the journal PLoS Pathogens.
The journal explains that hundreds of sarbecoviruses have been discovered - most commonly in bats in Asia - and the majority of them can't infect human cells, Hull Live reports.
However, a team at Washington State University (WSU) also found that the virus can use its spike proteins to infect human cells in a similar fashion to the way Covid does.The journal also explains that the new virus was resistant to neutralisation by serum from people who have been vaccinated against Covid.
Michael Letko, a virologist at WSU and corresponding author of the study, said that the virus was "a threat to global health and ongoing vaccine campaigns against SARS-CoV-2", Euronews reports.
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