Two years after the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, key questions about the emergence of its aetiological agent (SARS-CoV-2) remain a matter of considerable debate. Identifying when SARS-CoV-2 began spreading among people is one of those questions. Although the current canonically accepted timeline hypothesises viral emergence in Wuhan, China, in November or December 2019, a growing body of diverse studies provides evidence that the virus may have been spreading worldwide weeks, or even months, prior to that time. However, the hypothesis of earlier SARS-CoV-2 circulation is often dismissed with prejudicial scepticism and experimental studies pointing to early origins are frequently and speculatively attributed to false-positive tests. In this paper, we critically review current evidence that SARS-CoV-2 had been circulating prior to December of 2019, and emphasise how, despite some scientific limitations, this hypothesis should no longer be ignored and considered sufficient to warrant further larger-scale studies to determine its veracity.

Waiting for the truth: is reluctance in accepting an early origin hypothesis for SARS-CoV-2 delaying our understanding of viral emergence? / M. Canuti, S. Bianchi, O. Kolbl, S.L. Kosakovsky Pond, S. Kumar, M. Gori, C. Fappani, D. Colzani, E. Borghi, G. Zuccotti, M.C. Raviglione, E. Tanzi, A. Amendola. - In: BMJ GLOBAL HEALTH. - ISSN 2059-7908. - 7:3(2022 Mar), pp. e008386.1-e008386.8. [10.1136/bmjgh-2021-008386]

Waiting for the truth: is reluctance in accepting an early origin hypothesis for SARS-CoV-2 delaying our understanding of viral emergence?

S. Bianchi
Co-primo
Conceptualization
;
M. Gori;C. Fappani;D. Colzani;E. Borghi;G. Zuccotti;M.C. Raviglione;E. Tanzi
Penultimo
;
A. Amendola
Ultimo
2022

Abstract

Two years after the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, key questions about the emergence of its aetiological agent (SARS-CoV-2) remain a matter of considerable debate. Identifying when SARS-CoV-2 began spreading among people is one of those questions. Although the current canonically accepted timeline hypothesises viral emergence in Wuhan, China, in November or December 2019, a growing body of diverse studies provides evidence that the virus may have been spreading worldwide weeks, or even months, prior to that time. However, the hypothesis of earlier SARS-CoV-2 circulation is often dismissed with prejudicial scepticism and experimental studies pointing to early origins are frequently and speculatively attributed to false-positive tests. In this paper, we critically review current evidence that SARS-CoV-2 had been circulating prior to December of 2019, and emphasise how, despite some scientific limitations, this hypothesis should no longer be ignored and considered sufficient to warrant further larger-scale studies to determine its veracity.
SARS, SARS-CoV-2, COVID-19, pandemic, viral emergence;
Settore MED/07 - Microbiologia e Microbiologia Clinica
Settore MED/42 - Igiene Generale e Applicata
Settore MED/38 - Pediatria Generale e Specialistica
mar-2022
16-mar-2022
Article (author)
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Utilizza questo identificativo per citare o creare un link a questo documento: https://hdl.handle.net/2434/923931
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