A novel SARS-CoV-2 related coronavirus in bats from Cambodia

作者：Vibol Hul, Déborah Delaune, Erik A. Karlsson, Alexandre Hassanin, Tey Putita Ou, Artem Baidaliuk, Fabiana Gámbaro, Vương Tân Tú, Lucy Keatts, Jonna A. K. Mazet, Christine Johnson, Philippe Buchy, Philippe Dussart, Tracey Goldstein, Etienne Simon‐Lorière, Veasna Duong · 发表于：bioRxiv (Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory) · 年份：2021 · DOI：10.1101/2021.01.26.428212 · 被引用次数：80 · 研究领域：SARS-CoV-2 and COVID-19 Research、Animal Virus Infections Studies、Viral Infections and Outbreaks Research

Abstract Knowledge of the origin and reservoir of the coronavirus responsible for the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic is still fragmentary. To date, the closest relatives to SARS-CoV-2 have been detected in Rhinolophus bats sampled in the Yunnan province, China. Here we describe the identification of SARS-CoV-2 related coronaviruses in two Rhinolophus shameli bats sampled in Cambodia in 2010. Metagenomic sequencing identified nearly identical viruses sharing 92.6% nucleotide identity with SARS-CoV-2. Most genomic regions are closely related to SARS-CoV-2, with the exception of a small region corresponding to the spike N terminal domain. The discovery of these viruses in a bat species not found in China indicates that SARS-CoV-2 related viruses have a much wider geographic distribution than previously understood, and suggests that Southeast Asia represents a key area to consider in the ongoing search for the origins of SARS-CoV-2, and in future surveillance for coronaviruses.