The connection between bats & COVID-19
Erin Gillam, NDSU Associate Professor of Biological Sciences, joins Amy & JJ to discuss bats role in the coronavirus pandemic. How did SARS-CoV-2 emerge into the human population?
Unfortunately, it’s not as easy as just testing an animal to see if they have the same virus. In order to find the origin of a virus, Gillam says, “you have to play detective” and compare and study the DNA of the virus. In this case, the SARS-CoV-2 is very similar to a coronavirus in bats. If you line-up the DNA of the virus, it’s 90-100% similar, but there is one region (the spike protein – which you are probably familiar with from the images of the virus) that looks very similar to a virus in pangolins.
The hypothesis now is the virus originated in bats, then spilled over into pangolins (where it picked up the spike protein) and now has infected humans.
Most viruses originate in bats and end up in another animal before reaching the human population. Gillam says this is because either humans are illegally trafficking and harvesting animals they are not suppose to or humans are putting domestic animals near wild animals.
In this case, the pangolin is believed to be the most trafficked animal in the world because their scales are used in Chinese medicine.
Don’t blame the bats
Bats are the asymptotic carrier of these diseases, so should we be concerned about bats and try to eradicate them? Gillam says, “No, it’s not the fault of bats… it has to do with the fact that we, as humans, continue to push our way into areas that are natural habitats of bats… so there is a greater chance for disease to spill over, especially into things like domestic animals”.
Some of bats most important ‘ecosystem service’ is their appetite for crop pests, like moth and beetles, which can do millions of dollars of damage every year.
CLICK HERE for a deep dive into the origins of SARS-CoV-2
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(Amy Iler & JJ Gordon are talk-show hosts at 790 AM KFGO in Fargo-Moorhead. “It Takes 2 with Amy & JJ” can be heard weekdays 11am-2pm. Check out the show page on FACEBOOK. Follow Amy on Twitter @AmyKFGO . Follow JJ on Twitter @JJGodon701)
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