Coronavirus: Covid-19 scientists seek the invisible in Wuhan investigation into deadly pathogen
- Researchers from around the world will join Chinese scientists in the hunt for the origins of the virus ‘as soon as possible’, World Health Organization says
- Phase one will begin in the central China city where the pandemic began and include the search for ‘patient zero’
This is the second article in a series on the Covid-19 disease, one year after it first emerged in the Chinese city of Wuhan. It explores the response to the pandemic and what lessons may be learned as medical science predicts it won’t be the last. Please support us on our mission to bring you quality journalism.
Uncovering how a new virus made its first microscopic leap into a human body is challenging work for scientists at the best of times. One year after a viral outbreak that turned global pandemic, sickening millions and inflaming political feuds, is not the best of times.
They will join Chinese scientists working on the ground in Wuhan, the original epicentre of the outbreak, “as soon as possible”, according to the WHO.
At a United Nations meeting this month, US Health and Human Services Secretary Alex Azar said “the key issue is not where the virus first appeared, it is whether information about the virus was shared in a timely and transparent way”, a reference to Washington’s complaints about China’s early handling of the outbreak.
