INVESTIGATION

WHO and Chinese Scientists Convened to Discuss Novel Coronavirus Beginnings

The World Health Organization is compiling a team to investigate the origins of the novel coronavirus.

Scientists with the World Health Organization have had “extensive discussions” with Chinese scientists in Wuhan as they work to track the origin of the novel coronavirus. The experts reportedly discussed updates on animal health research. According to the WHO, the virus likely originated in bats and passed to another intermediary animal host before transferring to humans. At the beginning of the pandemic, China had forced a wildlife market in Wuhan to close after discovering several vendors had contracted the virus. The advance team of two epidemiologists are laying the groundwork for a broader group of international experts to investigate how the virus jumped from animals to humans.