TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — A senior Chinese health official is calling for large-scale virus testing of wildlife to prevent potential outbreaks of such epidemics as COVID-19.
Gao Fu (高福), a member of the Chinese Academy of Sciences and head of the Chinese Center for Disease Control and Prevention, recently penned an article warning against the threat of COVID-19-prone animals spreading the coronavirus to humans.
COVID has been detected in at least 11 species, including tigers, chimpanzees, mink, and snow leopards. It has been confirmed the virus is able to be transmitted to at least 14 species in laboratory experiments, CNA reported, citing the article.
The official, along with other authors of the article, argues that a broader screening for marine and terrestrial wildlife is needed to better identify coronavirus carriers. The effort would help disease control and paint a clearer picture of zoonotic transmission.
A WHO-led study published in April pointed to bats and an intermediary species as the origin of the pandemic. China banned the trade of wildlife last year but wildlife farms for fur and traditional Chinese medicine industries are still allowed to operate, presenting a loophole and “spillover risks,” according to Reuters.
Following the forced shutdown of the Huanan Seafood Wholesale Market in Wuhan, the suspected source of the outbreak, revelations showed the market had offered a great variety of wild meat. Some 100 wild species were hawked as being “served freshly slaughtered.”
There is no evidence that animals play a significant part in spreading COVID-19, though “some coronaviruses that infect animals can be spread to people,” according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).
There have been renewed calls for enforcement of laws against trading and consuming exotic species. (AP photo)