Pangolin is suspected as the second medium to spread the novel coronavirus. (Image via The Maritime Executive)

Pangolin IS medium for the novel coronavirus: LIPI

Alfonsus Adi Putra
Business & Industry
Medical and Health
Feb 11, 2020
1710
Indonesian Institute of Sciences (LIPI) confirmed that pangolin is a medium to the novel coronavirus’ infection originating from Wuhan, Hubei Province, Central China. Speaking on Monday, a microbiologist from LIPI, Sugiyono Saputra, said that there is the common genetic material of the novel coronavirus extracted from the patients and pangolin.

Mammals are the main host of the betacoronavirus.

Therefore, the finding proves even further that pangolin is a strong candidate to infect humans with the novel coronavirus. However, Sugiyono admitted that the finding was not published just yet.

A previous study, done in Guangzhou, South China, also confirmed that the 2019nCoV is also found in pangolins.

Furthermore, Sugiyono clarified that the common genetic material of coronavirus in pangolins and infected patients does not make pangolin as the harbinger of the 2019nCoV. The world still blames the bat as the main cause. Pangolin only acts as an intermediary.

Moreover, Sugiyono revealed that the Sundanese Pangolin or “Manis javanica” is the intermediary of the novel coronavirus. World Wildlife Fund (WWF) said that the Sundanese Pangolin is on the brink of extinction since it is one of the animals often sold in the illegal market.

Sundanese Pangolin is used by the Chinese as food and medicine. Even more, WWF revealed that pangolin’s meat is a raw material for drugs.

Source: https://bit.ly/38faLGM

Medical , Health , Disease , Pulmonary , Outbreak , Pneumonia , Coronavirus , ASEAN , Indonesia , Asia , China , Wuhan , Bat , Pangolin , Biology