Sanjib Kumar Karmee
It is already one and a half years since the first COVID-19 case was reported in Wuhan, China. Wuhan is home to the Wuhan Institute of Virology (WIV) and the Wuhan Center for Disease Control. Both institutes are leaders in bat-coronaviruses research and have huge collections of these viruses. The virus that caused the pandemic is called SARS-CoV-2. From the beginning SARS-Cov-2 has spread like wildfire claiming the lives of around 3.7 million people worldwide. Also, it has infected over 171 million people globally and is still counting. Furthermore, post-COVID-19 complications (like mucormycosis) are creating havoc. The unprecedented multiple waves of the pandemic led to loss of human life, loss of jobs and completely overwhelmed the existing healthcare system.
In the midst of ongoing chaos, the scientific community is yet to pinpoint on the true origin of the virus. There has been debate around the world about the source of the virus. Several theories are floating around, for instance: i) a form of animal-to-human transmission via a host (Zoonoses) and ii) it is leaked from a laboratory (lab leak). Various excellent articles on these topics were written by Nicholas Wade, David A. Relman, Katherine Eban, Rowan Jacobsen and many others.
On 20 October 2020, two Indian researchers (MC Rahalkar and RA Bahulikar) from the Agharkar Research Institute, Pune and the BAIF Development Research Foundation, Pune published a paper in the Frontiers in Public Health proposing lethal pneumonia cases in Mojiang Miners (2012) and the mineshaft could provide important clues to the origin of SARS-CoV-2. This publication cited a master’s thesis by Li Xu entitled: “The Analysis of Six Patients with Severe Pneumonia Caused by Unknown Viruses” (May 2013, Kun Ming Medical University). An Indian twitter user (@TheSeeker268) first found the thesis and then sent it to the researchers based in Pune. An English version of the thesis is now available online: https://www.documentcloud.org/documents/6981198-Analysis-of-Six-Patients-With-Unknown-Viruses.html. Several internet users (including TheSeeker, Rahalkar and Bahulikar) from across the world formed a group called DRASTIC (Decentralized Radical Autonomous Search Team Investigating COVID-19) and unearthed data from various available publications and websites. The documents found by DRASTIC brought out new facts about the origin of SARS-CoV-2 (https://drasticresearch.org).
The Wall Street Journal (WSJ) reported on 23 May 2021 (by citing undisclosed US documents) that three researchers from the WIV became sick in November 2019 and they were hospitalized. Another investigation report by the WSJ on 24 May 2021 stated that its reporter was detained by the police in Mojiang, China for several hours; later, photographs of an abandoned copper mine located in Mojiang were deleted from the journalist’s electronic device. The WSJ report further added that in April 2012, six miners fell ill after cleaning bat excreta in the mine and three of them died. On 28 May 2021, the EL ESPAÑOL described that the hospital where the miners were treated decided to send samples to the WIV. Subsequently, a team from the WIV led by Shi Zheng-Li (a prominent Chinese virologist working on bat coronavirus, known as the ‘Bat woman’) conducted research on it. The results of the study (describing new coronavirus) was published in which six cases of the disease as well as death of three miners were not mentioned. A year before the publication of the said article, Shi Zheng-Li and her team from the WIV approached the abandoned copper mine to collect more bat samples. Thus far, no information is available about these samples. The chain of emerging events indicates that the master’s thesis by Li Xu (found by the DRASTIC team) is corroborating facts mentioned in several news reports.
Recently, a team appointed by the WHO and its Chinese counterpart conducted a joint investigation to look into the source of SARS-CoV-2. Liang Wannian, the Chinese head of the team, reportedly said that Chinese authorities tested 50,000 animal specimens, including 1,100 bats. But they did not find a matching virus. The report remains inconclusive.
Science is a never-ending process as new discoveries always lead to new questions. Science is about never-ending questioning and demanding for adequate experimental evidence about any theory. Are the samples collected from six Mojiang miners available? Are the samples collected from bats in the abandoned copper mine available? Will it be possible to collect samples from the miners who survived the illness? Can an independent group of scientists examine these samples? Will China allow access to the abandoned copper mine in Mojiang? Why are investigative journalists denied access to the abandoned mine? Will the joint report submitted by Chinese-WHO team undergo a peer review process? Will we ever know the true origin of COVID-19?
A group of 18 eminent scientists recently published a letter in the Science journal. They have sought a thorough investigation into the origins of COVID-19.
The current scenario looks even more complicated since Shi Zheng-Li had conducted research projects in collaboration with US-based virologists. For instance, Peter Daszak, EcoHealth Alliance, US, had been collaborating with Shi Zheng-Li for several years. Also, Daszak’s organization funded coronavirus research at the WIV and channelized government funds for it. Notably, researchers from the WIV are performing gain-of-function research (experiments designed to alter a pathogen to make it more infectious). Fredrik Elgh, Professor of Virology at Umeå University, Sweden, who examined the 2003 SARS virus leak, says it is possible that the ongoing pandemic began with a laboratory leak.
An open scientific investigation into the true origin of COVID-19 will help policymakers formulate strategies to educate citizens and mitigate the risk of future outbreaks. For example, the Odisha government has passed a resolution to make disaster and pandemic preparedness a part of the curriculum of schools and colleges. In addition, knowing the origin of the pandemic will help to understand and prevent accidents/leaks in biological laboratories since proliferation of bio-labs worldwide has increased the risks of a pandemic. Politics should not take precedence over data, facts, and science. At present, the focus should be on information gathering, and to conduct an open investigation by giving equal weightage to both zoonotic spillover and lab-leak. The conclusion can be drawn once adequate information is available.
The writer is a scientist and an alumnus of IIT Madras.