Coronavirus Found In Two Bat Species From Four States: ICMR

NEW DELHI: A recent study by the researchers at Indian Council Of Medical Research (ICMR), found the presence pathogenic coronaviruses in two species of Indian bats.

According to the study, strains of coronaviruses, different from the novel coronavirus, is found in two bat species, Rousettus and Pteropus species from four states.

Swab samples of 25 bats belonging to these species from Kerala, Tamil Nadu, Himachal Pradesh and Puducherry had tested positive for the virus through reverse-transcription polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) testing.

According to media reports, the study, published in the Indian Journal of Medical Research, states that there is no evidence to suggest that the bat coronaviruses can be transmitted to humans.

The ICMR study, conducted in collaboration with a team of scientists from the National Institute of Virology (NIV), Pune, is based on samples collected from forests in Kerala, Karnataka, Tamil Nadu, Himachal Pradesh, Punjab, Gujarat, Odisha, Telangana, Chandigarh and Puducherr, reports said.

The origin of the novel coronavirus has been traced back to bats and pangolins. But there is no definite proof that the virus jumped from bats to humans.

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