Alexander Kekulé could not foresee the consequences. The German virologist sat in Markus Lanz's studio on November 26th to talk about the corona pandemic. And he surprised viewers with a few lesser-known insights into the course of the disease. The one variant of the virus, said Kekulé, which is currently circulating worldwide, first appeared in northern Italy. It is a genetically modified version that is more infectious than the original variant. Markus Lanz was visibly taken aback. That sounds plausible, said the ZDF talker, but it could also come from the mouth of the Chinese state propaganda.