WHO: Research on the origin of SARS-CoV-2 virus remains unfinished

WHO affirmed that all hypotheses about the origin of the SARS-CoV-2 virus, such as transmission from animals or laboratory leakage, still need to be further studied due to lack of necessary information.

WHO continues to leave open all hypotheses about the origin of COVID-19 - Photo: REUTERS

On June 27, the World Health Organization (WHO) released a new report by the Scientific Advisory Group on the Origin of Emerging Pathogens (SAGO), comprising 27 international, independent and interdisciplinary experts, on the origin of the SARS-CoV-2 virus - the agent causing the COVID-19 pandemic.

The report said research to clarify the origin of the SARS-CoV-2 virus is not yet complete.

In a statement on the research report, WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus affirmed that all possibilities for the origin of the SARS-CoV-2 virus, including transmission from animals and leakage from a laboratory, need further consideration.

"Given the current situation, all hypotheses about the origin of the virus must continue to be considered, including animal transmission and laboratory leakage," said Mr. Tedros.

Accordingly, SAGO's new report is a synthesis of peer-reviewed research, unpublished data, field investigations, expert interviews, government reports and intelligence sources.

WHO said SAGO has made some progress in understanding the origins of the COVID-19 pandemic, but still lacks key data to fully evaluate existing hypotheses.

Based on the available evidence, the advisory group believes that the possibility that SARS-CoV-2 originated in an animal source, such as directly from bats or through an intermediate host, currently has a higher weight of evidence.

Early in the pandemic, WHO asked China to provide data on hundreds of virus sequences from early cases, along with information on animals sold at Wuhan markets and data on the operations and biosafety conditions of laboratories in the city.

However, the organization said requests sent to China have not yet been met.

Mr. Tedros continued to call on China and other countries with relevant information to fully and transparently share missing information, in order to serve the common interest in preventing and responding to future pandemics.

Professor Marietjie Venter of the University of the Witwatersrand, South Africa and chair of the SAGO group, said in the report that tracing the origin of SARS-CoV-2 is not only a scientific task, but also an ethical responsibility to minimize future global suffering and loss.

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Source: https://tuoitre.vn/who-nghien-cuu-nguon-goc-vi-rut-sars-cov-2-van-dang-do-20250628120448665.htm