Reuters: The accusation that the new crown virus originated from the Wuhan laboratory is a conspiracy theory
Xinhua News Agency, Beijing, April 28, Reuters published an exclusive interview with Yuan Zhiming, a researcher at the Wuhan Institute of Virology, Chinese Academy of Sciences and director of the Wuhan National Biosafety Laboratory. Yuan Zhiming said in an exclusive interview that the claim that the new crown virus was synthesized by the Wuhan Institute of Virology is unfounded, and the origin of the new crown pneumonia disease is inconclusive.
Reuters reported that although the new crown virus evolved naturally from a scientific consensus, those conspiracy theory accusations have attracted attention.
Yuan Zhiming said that the accusation of "maliciousness" in the laboratory of Wuhan Virus Research Institute was "out of nothing" and contradicted all the existing evidence. "Wuhan Virus Research Institute has no intention or ability to design and create a new coronavirus. In addition, the new coronavirus genome does not show any signs of artificial transformation."
Reuters reported that an Indian Institute of Technology paper contributed to some conspiracy theories. The paper claimed that the protein of the new coronavirus is similar to that of HIV, but it has been withdrawn. At present, most scientists believe that the new coronavirus originates from wild animals, and bats and pangolins are considered to be the most likely hosts.
Yuan Zhiming said in a written reply that more than 70% of new infectious diseases originated from animals, especially wild animals. Scientists believe that the seven known human coronaviruses are derived from bats, mice or domestic animals.
Yuan Zhiming also denied the conspiracy theory that the laboratory accidentally leaked coronavirus collected from bats, saying that the laboratory strictly implements biosecurity procedures. "The high-level biosafety laboratory has advanced protective facilities and strict measures to ensure the safety of laboratory personnel and the environment." Yuan Zhiming emphasized that the Wuhan Virus Research Institute is committed to information transparency and will share all available data about the new coronavirus in a timely manner.
Yuan Zhiming said that "there is still no answer" about the origin of the new coronavirus. He also cited a paper published by British and German scientists this month that the new coronavirus variants circulating in the United States are more "original" versions of the Chinese version The variant may first appear in the United States.