Coronavirus is a dangerous disease that develops when the body is exposed to 2019-nCoV. The laboratory in Wuhan is characterized by the presence of innovative equipment. Highly qualified specialists work here. Therefore, the possibility of spreading the virus from the laboratory cannot be ruled out.
Is there an Institute of Virology in Wuhan?
The Institute of Virology of the Chinese Academy of Sciences is located in Wuhan, China. The most dangerous pathogens are used for work here. In 2017, the Virus Laboratory received certificates that allowed it to work with a variety of pathogens.
The laboratory has the right to study deadly viruses. But, the Chinese authorities deny her involvement in the development of the coronavirus. In turn, the United States of America suspects China of conducting a covert biological war. China's Internet sources have information that the virus is part of a US conspiracy to use biological weapons against China. Such information may indicate that China is conducting propaganda in response to future allegations that the coronavirus was released from a laboratory.
Does the lab have top biohazard status?
On the territory of mainland China, the bacteriological laboratory was certified according to the biosafety class bsl 4. According to the information of the Nature magazine, the Chinese government plans to build 5-7 such laboratories in 2025. Today, the biological laboratory in Wuhan can be compared with the Harbin Veterinary Research Institute.
The Highest Biohazard Laboratory was upgraded and certified in 2017. Nor, the beginning of certification falls on the time of SARS infection. The certification was carried out after the virus of this disease was leaked.
Could the coronavirus have been developed there?
The modernization of Chinese laboratories required a number of actions - to build new buildings, to update the material base. Chinese specialists had to take courses in Western laboratories, which work according to strict safety standards. Specialists from the West often came to the biological laboratory, which is located in the city of Wuhan.
Most of the employees of the Institute of Virology trained in Lyon, where the laboratory for the creation of viruses is located, which has the appropriate certificates. The possibility of carrying out secret military developments is excluded.
Shoham is a serious subject matter expert who holds a PhD in Medical Virology. For 21 years, Shoham has been a senior analyst with Israeli military intelligence for chemical and biological warfare. The specialist says that a virus leak from the laboratory is possible, but this fact must be proven.
Earlier at the institute, specialists studied the influenza virus, coronavirus, a strain that develops acute respiratory syndrome, dengue, and encephalitis. An Israeli expert reports that the Wuhan laboratory is studying coronaviruses, which indicates their presence. The coronavirus that causes SARS is part of the Chinese biological warfare program, as it is being studied in several laboratories in China. According to Shoham, the possibility of including a strain of coronavirus 2019-nCoV in the Chinese biological warfare program is not excluded.
The Chinese authorities claim that there are no offensive biological weapons in the PRC. The State Department in 2019 made a report that there are suspicions of covert biological work for military purposes. The Chinese authorities say they do not know anything about the origin of the new coronavirus.
Gao Fu, director of the China Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, says that according to the first signs of the disease, it can be concluded that dead animals sold at the local market were the source of the virus. According to preliminary data from the Chinese authorities, the virus could be spread from snakes, belugas, rabbits, and chickens.
Experts have doubts that the wholesale seafood market has become the primary source of the coronavirus. A group of Chinese scientists have published a new report in a medical journal denying that the market was involved in the spread of the coronavirus. This conclusion is based on studies of the first infected people. Of the 41 people, 13 cases were not linked to the Wuhan market.
Leak or intentional distribution?
The Virology Center is one of the most important in the People's Republic of China. A highly qualified specialist, Shi Zhengli, works here. The virologist was the first to discover that it was bats that became carriers of the SARS virus. Shi Zhengli led a group of specialists, and together with them conducted virological studies of various types of coronaviruses. This group of scientists was the first to isolate the 2019-nCoV virus.
Most experts believe that the location of the coronavirus research center in Wuhan is a banal coincidence with the development of the epidemic. There is not much difference between scientists and hunters who thoroughly know the fauna of the area and sell it on the market.
If you look at the information that was provided by Zhengli and her team before the appearance of a new virus in the world, then the least of all seems to be a leak. After years of studying bats and looking for natural sources of coronaviruses, scientists spoke in 2017 about the likelihood of the virus spreading to humans. Narrow specialists and some media sources were made aware of this information.
The Institute of Virology is located in Wuhan, where they study virology. That is why the version of the spread of the 2019-nCoV strain is not excluded.