Coronavirus Pandemic: Apocalypse Now! Or exaggerated scare story?

Laura Knight-Jadczyk
2 h ·
Okay people, this sh*t is going too far. Just STOP with the corona virus panicking. I've read the stats; the death rate is about the same for regular flu epidemics that we have about every year. I do not know WHY the media is pushing this crap, but it's a HUGE distraction. And look at this poor precious kitty killed in a horrible way because of ignorant people panicking.

JUST STOP IT! Don't share, don't re-tweet any panicky stuff about this virus!
https://vk.com/id464042230#




Bon, tout le monde, ce truc va trop loin. Arrêtez de paniquer avec le virus corona. J'ai lu les statistiques ; le taux de mortalité est à peu près le même pour les épidémies de grippe régulières que nous avons environ chaque année. Je ne sais pas POURQUOI les médias poussent cette merde, mais c'est une ÉNORME distraction. Et regardez ce pauvre et précieux chaton tué d'une manière horrible à cause de la panique des ignorants.

ARRÊTEZ-LE ! Ne partagez pas, ne re-tweettez pas de trucs de panique sur ce virus !
https://www.thesun.ie/news/5058479/coronavirus-quaran..
 
SevenFeathers said:
Here is an interesting article about how this situation causes fear, the different aspects of fear, and how fear negatively affects us.
The Coronavirus - Containing Pandemic Fear
Excerpt:
On Fear
Fear is a messed up and dangerous thing. It shuts down the processes of the mind that make rational and compassionate thinking possible, triggering people to do the craziest, riskiest and most unstable and unreasonable things imaginable. This is why fear is the cheapest and quickest way to influence and control people, and why tyrants must always maintain a monopoly on violence. If you want someone to do your bidding, just frighten them into thinking they have no other choice. It works every time.
Click to expand...
Here goes:
Fear is the weapon, and the Feeding Frenzy is happening NOW, big time, in 4th Density Service to Self Land.

The PTB are seeing just how many they can kill in a population, with Fear.
How many can be culled by FEAR.
Fear of the... common cold.

Yeah, I know, I will post this first:
What I am posting is Research for Entertainment Purposes Only.
I have no authority nor license to give any medical, psychological, or life skills advice, I just have information to share, for entertainment purposes only.

I have learned that the Coronavirus ONLY shows up when HEALING is happen, after the "Issue of "a stinking life situation" is resolved.
These gullible, hardworking, sad Chinese people were just about to head home for a long awaited holiday.
Getting away from the harsh, "stinking, polluted city" and the heartless, controlling "stinking jerk cops and bosses".
They had been working long hours, looking forward to going home to the villages to be with their precious children, their friends, and parents.
Home to drink and eat and party...

Many of us have experienced this, in some form.
Your vacation time finally arrives, you get on the plane, train, or start off in the car, and the sneezing starts, the runny nose, and coughing.

The BELIEF is, you have a Cold, you are sick.

After a few days of sniffles and whatever, you rebound.
If your emotional buildup was really intense, then there will be vacation time wasted in bed, with a fever and bone aches.
That is what is called the FLU.
The reality is, for the length of time that lead up to "getting away from the stinking situation" the tissues and lining of the nasal passages and throat were all changed to accommodate dealing with the issue...the "stinking, in your face, work crap"

As soon as you got away, the body starts the repairs.
Remember, we are living in "wet machines", and all repairs, unneeded cells and waste come out in mucus, pus, and spit... All controlled from the intellect outer layer of the brain.

That is the easy part of this Coronavirus crap, bunch of lies.

Next comes the DEATH FRIGHT part...
When we are shocked for our lives, scared in a Death fright moment, our response is PRIMAL from the "Heart" center, the Instinctive center.
Our lungs are IMMEDIATELY open up, to get more air. New nodes are formed, in the lungs, to get more air.
To SURVIVE we need to breath, we need more AIR.
The clean up, once the threat is over, is to cough out the unneeded tissue and phlegm.
Bacteria help do that...
That is call PNEUMONIA.
The trick for the controllers here, is to keep shocking you, scaring you, and dosing you with chemicals, chemicals that kill the bacteria that are working FOR you.
The more loops of despair, fear, helplessness, and SHOCKS, the weaker one gets, right to DEATH.

I have only been studying, living and thriving with this information and knowledge for 14 years.
I could be wrong...
but.... that is what I think is going on....

Nose and Sinuses

Understanding the common cold and sinus infections based on the science of German New Medicine (GNM).
learninggnm.com learninggnm.com

Lungs SBSs

Understanding diseases of the lungs, pleura, and diaphragm based on the science of German New Medicine (GNM).
learninggnm.com learninggnm.com
 
As far as fear mongering goes...

In times of a crisis, we see where we stand in the way people react. And it isn't fear of the particular incident, it is people who lack common sense, and don't know how to respond, because they go through life pretending to be qualified at whatever their position is, and maintaining an image, so they congregate in numbers to the most repeated perspectives.

And this works as long as we face no crisis, but if something happens, the weaknesses become apparent, and everyone goes into Moe, Curly and Larry mode, because they want to contribute, but they lack common sense. I'm sure most people have encountered someone who hasn't a clue about what their doing, and what do you do? Nothing. It's pointless. Then you put it out of you mind and move on.

So people with no sense are subject to hysteria and fear, and they spread it by aggravating the situation with their own notion of helping, which is scary because they can become mobs and then it is mob rule.
 
From another article, some more regarding the new hospitals plus other details - excerpts:

China Arrested Doctors Who Warned About Coronavirus Outbreak. Now Death Toll’s Rising, Stocks Are Plunging.

Daily Dose Of Entertaiment
www.domigood.com www.domigood.com

Back in Wuhan, one of two speed-build hospitals began absorbing patients on Monday. It took 10 days to build, has 1,000 beds, and is staffed by 1,400 military doctors who are managing the symptoms of those under their care. The additions are welcome, but people living in Hubei, the province where Wuhan is the capital, have doubts about how effective the facilities will be. There’s a severe shortage of testing kits, and sick people are still being turned away from hospitals. It is common for patients to wander between several emergency rooms before giving up to head home and tough it out.

This outbreak has given new meaning to a well-worn adage: When China sneezes, the world catches a cold. People recall a lack of transparency when SARS was hitting China, even though the WHO has praised Beijing repeatedly for improving its performance this time around. But that may not be enough. Right now, every country in the world is trying to prevent the epidemic from flaring up on its own shores.
~~~~~~~~~~~
Yet last December—before people all over China were falling sick with pneumonia-like symptoms, before people around the world grew alarmed about a disease leaping from captured wild animals to human shoppers in dense Chinese food markets, and before coronavirus reached new shores after being carried onto planes by human hosts, forcing the World Health Organization to declare a global emergency—eight people discussed how several patients in Wuhan were experiencing severe, rapid breakdowns in their respiratory systems.

They were part of a medical school’s alumni group on WeChat, a popular social network in China, and they were concerned that SARS, Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome, was back.

It wasn’t long before police detained them. The authorities said these eight doctors and medical technicians were “misinforming” the public, that there was no SARS, that the information was obviously wrong, and that everyone in the city must remain calm. On the first day of 2020, Wuhan police said they had “taken legal measures” against the eight individuals who had “spread rumors.”
[...]
Li Wenliang, a doctor who was among the eight people who tried to sound the alarm before the coronavirus infected many thousands and killed hundreds, has been diagnosed as someone infected with the coronavirus and is being treated at a hospital.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Authorities are still actively censoring social media posts and news articles that are questioning the government response to the outbreak. One local man, Fang Bin, uploaded footage of corpses in a van and a hospital in Wuhan, and was then tracked down and taken into custody. His laptop was confiscated, and he had to pedal for three hours on a bicycle to get home after he was questioned, warned, and released. His coronavirus video went viral.
~~~~~~~~~~~~
This was the worst plummet in China’s markets since an equity bubble burst in 2015, and it isn’t difficult to see why. Schools have been closed indefinitely. Flights have been grounded, and domestic travel has been limited or even halted. Office buildings, restaurants, and malls are empty. Public functions have been canceled. Overwhelmingly, white-collar workers across the country are telecommuting. The country, it seems, is a network of ghost towns with wide boulevards and glass towers. Combined with the ongoing swine flu and a new outbreak of avian flu south of Wuhan, the coronavirus is hitting China’s economy on many fronts.

Perhaps the most striking development in China is how borders became tangible. Villages, towns, and cities are physically blocked off from each other, sometimes with local officials posted on roads to stop anyone except emergency relief personnel from passing through. Married couples who hail from different parts of the country have been separated if they chose to travel over the Lunar New Year; as they returned home after the break, local officials in some locations barred one spouse, whoever is an “outlander,” from entering city limits.
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:shock:
 
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I got some info from a public health work colleague in Singapore on the subject today. These are his tips for avoiding the infection:

Golden Rule – Don’t touch your FACE. Your face is sacred.
Many Asian countries are prepared.
Local transmission is almost guaranteed. And likely to happen soon. Avoid big groups and events when local transmissions start.
Do not overload hospitals with common ailments.
Prolonged exposure to infected person increases risk of infection.
Virus can stay alive on surfaces for 30 to 60 minutes. Wash tables with detergent and water.
Touching infected surfaces and then touching face increases risk of infection
Use sanitisers with alcohol. Keep hands dry. Sanitisers do not work if your hands are wet. Dry your hands.
Wash hands with soap and water before wearing masks.
Handshakes can pass virus if the infected person has touched his nose.
No effective supplements but Vitamin D (not really proven conclusively) may help prevent development of pneumonia
3 ply masks better than 2 ply ones. Wear with blue side facing out.
Mask protects others from infected wearer and protects wearer from viruses from the outside.
N95 masks work but it is uncomfortable and results in wearer adjusting mask often, increasing risk of infection.
Do not touch any part of your face before washing your hands. Your face is sacred. Flinging your hair against face increases risk of contamination.
Avoid large crowd such as large exercise classes.
Cn2019 can spread even if infected person shows no symptoms.
3-4% fatality rate but rate is likely to come down.
Visiting clinics - do not touch face and avoid touching chairs etc unnecessarily.
Avoid seeking medical attention at hospitals for minor colds etc to avoid overloading the healthcare systems.
Wearing caps increases risk of trapping viruses.
 
Laura said:
I saw that and it just broke my heart. Poor, sweet kitty. I put it on my FB page and I hope everybody will share my post about it.
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Hi Laura - hope you're doing OK.

I saw your post on Facebook and found it upsetting that the Sun article affected you in such a negative way. I also couldn't stomach those poor pets being murdered - what kind of a savage human being would do that?! It's sick.

But I also think that we must be cautious and keep our emotions at bay. It's almost as if there are two viruses here - the coronavirus and some sort of mental virus that's making everyone nuts.

Lest we act against our own good interest.

The pet rumours and the ensuing violent behaviour occurred in the same areas as the origin of the coronavirus. That's interesting because as more epidemiological evidence comes to light, it is also becoming clear that the disease took off due to unsafe live animal keeping, bad food handling practices, odd dietary choices and shockingly poor hygiene.

Little surprise that people are becoming angry and are venting their frustration on those poor pets. We have a dangerous combination of ignorance, helplessness in the face of suffering and death - and festering resentment towards, well, likely towards the world.

There is little chance that Twitter or FB, or western rumour mongering had anything to do with the poor kitty dying. Those platforms do not exist in China. With few VPN-based exceptions for the middle class, the country is generally immune to those kinds of influences.

It's the general lack of access to reliable information and the primitive, backward attitudes of a significant percentage of the Chinese population that got us here.

I'm sorry, I have to disagree with you that this is a major distraction being pushed by the media. No, something truly concerning is taking place right now and we must take notice. Keep in mind that the statistical reliability out of China is low, the numbers do not necessarily add up.

There will not be a vaccine. That's all bullshit. Let's just hope there is a suitable - and generally available - antiviral treatment or we will have a global pandemic on our hands. I will be the happiest person to be wrong on this - for now, I'd say I'm more right than wrong, pending the outcomes of the human trials.

I think your approach from hours before the FB post is a better one. Let us focus on how non-standard options can help with prevention and treatment. Your post on iodine was brilliant, let's spread that word - and then be glad when nothing happens.

Again, watch Europe very closely - the coronavirus spread is getting worse on a daily basis and the global stats are really beginning to take off.

Can you just please not completely dismiss the alternate realities here and consider your options. If not for yourself, then maybe for others?

Cassandra out. 2c.
 
The 2017-2018 flu season was one of the deadliest in decades, with high levels of outpatient clinic and emergency department visits for flu-like illness and high flu-related hospitalization rates.

For 2017: Flu Deaths per 100,000 population: 2.0
www.healthline.com

Facts and Statistics About the Flu

The flu, or influenza, is a contagious respiratory illness caused by viruses that infect the nose, throat, and sometimes the lungs. The flu spreads mostly from person to person, and people with flu are most contagious the first three to four days after their illness begins. Read on for more flu...
www.healthline.com www.healthline.com


Flu Pandemic Morbidity / Mortality

Influenza pandemics have occurred every 10 to 60 years, with three occurring in the twentieth century (1918, 1957-1958, and 1967-1968). Influenza pandemics occur when there is a notable genetic change (termed genetic shift) in the circulating strain of influenza. Because of this genetic shift, a...
www.globalsecurity.org www.globalsecurity.org

Pandemic years are associated with many more cases of influenza and a higher case fatality rate than that seen in seasonal flu outbreaks. It is common to encounter clinical attack rate ranges for seasonal flu of 5% to 15% in the literature. For pandemic flu, clinical attack rates are reported in the range of 25% to 50%.

During a typical year in the United States, 30,000 to 50,000 persons die as a result of influenza viral infection. Frequently cited numbers are 20,000 deaths each year, and 37,000 annual deaths. About 5-10% of hospitalizations for influenza lead to fatal outcome in adults.

In normal years, although most influenza infection is in children, the serious morbidity and mortality is almost entirely among elderly people with underlying chronic disease. During influenza epidemics from 1979-80 through 2000-01, the estimated overall number of influenza-associated hospitalizations in the United States ranged from approximately 54,000 to 430,000/epidemic. An average of approximately 226,000 influenza-related excess hospitalizations occurred per year, with 63% of all hospitalizations occurring among persons aged > 65 years.

Influenza-related deaths can result from pneumonia and from exacerbations of cardiopulmonary conditions and other chronic diseases. Deaths of older adults account for > 90% of deaths attributed to pneumonia and influenza. In one study of influenza epidemics, approximately 19,000 influenza-associated pulmonary and circulatory deaths per influenza season occurred during 1976-1990, compared with approximately 36,000 deaths during 1990--1999. Estimated rates of influenza-associated pulmonary and circulatory deaths/100,000 persons were 0.4--0.6 among persons aged 0-49 years, 7.5 among persons aged 50--64 years, and 98.3 among persons aged > 65 years.

A different pattern may emerge in a pandemic. The 1918-19 pandemic affected mainly healthy young adults and seemed to spare those at the extremes of life. In the USA, the mortality rate during the 1918 pandemic pandemic was around 2.5%. Similarly, in 1957, the brunt fell on schoolchildren and young adults.

The number of hospitalizations and deaths will depend on the virulence of the pandemic virus. Estimates differ about 10-fold between more and less severe scenarios. Published estimates based on extrapolation of the 1957 and 1968 pandemics suggest that there could be 839,000 to 9,625,000 hospitalizations, 18-42 million outpatient visits, and 20-47 million additional illnesses, depending on the attack rate of infection during the pandemic. Estimates based on extrapolation from the more severe 1918 pandemic suggest that substantially more hospitalizations and deaths could occur. The demand for inpatient and intensive-care unit (ICU) beds and assisted ventilation services could increase by more than 25% under the less severe scenario.

Because the virulence of the influenza virus that causes the next pandemic cannot be predicted, two scenarios were presented by CDC, HHS and DHS based on extrapolation of past pandemic experience. The DHS estimates are suspect, since they appear to derive from a 1999 analysis that was based on the 1997 US population of 265 million. By 2005 the US population was about 295 million, so the DHS estimates are about 10% low simply due to the growth in population.

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), it has been estimated that in the absence of any control measures such as vaccination and drugs, a "medium-level" influenza pandemic in the United States could kill 89,000 to 207,000 people, affect from 15 to 35 percent of the U.S. population, and generate associated costs ranging from $71 billion to $167 billion. Another Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) estimate suggested that, in the United States alone, up to 200 million people will be infected, 50 million people will require outpatient care, two million people will be hospitalized, and between 100,000 and 500,000 persons will die. These numbers are significantly higher than the estimates used by the Deparment of Homeland Security. The HHS notes that the death rate associated with the 1918 influenza applied to the current population would produce 1.9 million deaths in the United States and 180 million to 360 million deaths globally. It is most noteworthy that the "Low" scenario presented by HHS corresponds to the "High" scenario presented by DHS.
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China puts novel coronavirus mortality rate at 2.1%

tass.com

China puts novel coronavirus mortality rate at 2.1%

"At present, the number of those who had recovered is growing steadily. We are absolutely sure of our ability to win this battle against the epidemic," the Chinese Foreign Ministry's spokeswoman said
tass.com tass.com

BEIJING, February 4. /TASS/. Only about 2.1% of people who contracted the novel coronavirus die of pneumonia caused by it, Chinese Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Hua Chunying said on Tuesday.

"Although the number of new cases of the coronavirus infection is growing, the mortality rate in China is very low and stands at 2.1% [from the overall number of those infected], which is way below the mortality rates of Ebola fever, Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS) or Middle Eastern Respiratory Syndrome (MERS)," the spokesperson said on the Chinese Foreign Ministry’s official website.
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Now, if it was Ebola out of control, I'd be worried.
 
JEEP said:
From another article, some more regarding the new hospitals plus other details - excerpts:

:shock:
Click to expand...
I think China is doing well closing villages and cities and borders. I read some years ago that in Africa, when a pandemic happened the only way, and it seemed that worked, was closing the site where the pandemic was, closing villages for example. So China is doing what is good to contain this virus.

In another subject, we are still very in a Middle Age mind, where fear made people act like crazy, ignorance taking the brain like a malevolent virus. We are really a very poor species. We need victims, now the Chinese. I am very sorry for them, it is really a very difficult situation they are living.

And the first culprit here is WHO, always talking about pandemic that will erased humanity. For me this organisation is a criminal one. My idea of them did not change with time.

Lets be confident that China will be apt to take care. While, lets be confident about our-selves, put always in perspective, not be obsessed (easy to say but difficult some times to not be) and look this like a movie that is a lesson about humanity and the human condition. It is not a good movie, by the way. But it is a lesson.
 
New York boy, 11, dies of flu virus that attacked his heart despite getting the flu shot that NIH doctors say is a 'mismatch for kids'

www.dailymail.co.uk

New York boy, 11, dies from flu after the virus attacked his heart

Luca Calanni, 11, of Hamburg, New York, passed away from the flu on Saturday after the virus attacked his heart while he was being treated for septic shock and he suffered cardiac arrest.
www.dailymail.co.uk www.dailymail.co.uk

I would say that the vaccine is probably what killed the boy.
 

Summary
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Background
In late December, 2019, patients presenting with viral pneumonia due to an unidentified microbial agent were reported in Wuhan, China. A novel coronavirus was subsequently identified as the causative pathogen, provisionally named 2019 novel coronavirus (2019-nCoV). As of Jan 26, 2020, more than 2000 cases of 2019-nCoV infection have been confirmed, most of which involved people living in or visiting Wuhan, and human-to-human transmission has been confirmed.
Methods
We did next-generation sequencing of samples from bronchoalveolar lavage fluid and cultured isolates from nine inpatients, eight of whom had visited the Huanan seafood market in Wuhan. Complete and partial 2019-nCoV genome sequences were obtained from these individuals. Viral contigs were connected using Sanger sequencing to obtain the full-length genomes, with the terminal regions determined by rapid amplification of cDNA ends. Phylogenetic analysis of these 2019-nCoV genomes and those of other coronaviruses was used to determine the evolutionary history of the virus and help infer its likely origin. Homology modelling was done to explore the likely receptor-binding properties of the virus.
Findings
The ten genome sequences of 2019-nCoV obtained from the nine patients were extremely similar, exhibiting more than 99·98% sequence identity. Notably, 2019-nCoV was closely related (with 88% identity) to two bat-derived severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS)-like coronaviruses, bat-SL-CoVZC45 and bat-SL-CoVZXC21, collected in 2018 in Zhoushan, eastern China, but were more distant from SARS-CoV (about 79%) and MERS-CoV (about 50%). Phylogenetic analysis revealed that 2019-nCoV fell within the subgenus Sarbecovirus of the genus Betacoronavirus, with a relatively long branch length to its closest relatives bat-SL-CoVZC45 and bat-SL-CoVZXC21, and was genetically distinct from SARS-CoV. Notably, homology modelling revealed that 2019-nCoV had a similar receptor-binding domain structure to that of SARS-CoV, despite amino acid variation at some key residues.
Interpretation
2019-nCoV is sufficiently divergent from SARS-CoV to be considered a new human-infecting betacoronavirus. Although our phylogenetic analysis suggests that bats might be the original host of this virus, an animal sold at the seafood market in Wuhan might represent an intermediate host facilitating the emergence of the virus in humans. Importantly, structural analysis suggests that 2019-nCoV might be able to bind to the angiotensin-converting enzyme 2 receptor in humans. The future evolution, adaptation, and spread of this virus warrant urgent investigation.
Funding
National Key Research and Development Program of China, National Major Project for Control and Prevention of Infectious Disease in China, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shandong First Medical University.
Click to expand...

Discussion
From genomic surveillance of clinical samples from patients with viral pneumonia in Wuhan, China, a novel coronavirus (termed 2019-nCoV) has been identified.10,11

Our phylogenetic analysis of 2019-nCoV, sequenced from nine patients’ samples, showed that the virus belongs to the subgenus Sarbecovirus. 2019-nCoV was more similar to two bat-derived coronavirus strains, bat-SL-CoVZC45 and bat-SL-CoVZXC21, than to known human-infecting coronaviruses, including the virus that caused the SARS outbreak of 2003.

Epidemiologically, eight of the nine patients in our study had a history of exposure to the Huanan seafood market in Wuhan, suggesting that they might have been in close contact with the infection source at the market. However, one patient had never visited the market, although he had stayed in a hotel near the market before the onset of their illness. This finding suggests either possible droplet transmission or that the patient was infected by a currently unknown source. Evidence of clusters of infected family members and medical workers has now confirmed the presence of human-to-human transmission.12 Clearly, this infection is a major public health concern, particularly as this outbreak coincides with the peak of the Chinese Spring Festival travel rush, during which hundreds of millions of people will travel through China.

As a typical RNA virus, the average evolutionary rate for coronaviruses is roughly 10–⁴ nucleotide substitutions per site per year,1 with mutations arising during every replication cycle. It is, therefore, striking that the sequences of 2019-nCoV from different patients described here were almost identical, with greater than 99·9% sequence identity. This finding suggests that 2019-nCoV originated from one source within a very short period and was detected relatively rapidly. However, as the virus transmits to more individuals, constant surveillance of mutations arising is needed.

Phylogenetic analysis showed that bat-derived corona-viruses fell within all five subgenera of the genus Betacoronavirus. Moreover, bat-derived coronaviruses fell in basal positions in the subgenus Sarbecovirus, with 2019-nCoV most closely related to bat-SL-CoVZC45 and bat-SL-CoVZXC21, which were also sampled from bats.23 These data are consistent with a bat reservoir for coronaviruses in general and for 2019-nCoV in particular. However, despite the importance of bats, several facts suggest that another animal is acting as an intermediate host between bats and humans. First, the outbreak was first reported in late December, 2019, when most bat species in Wuhan are hibernating. Second, no bats were sold or found at the Huanan seafood market, whereas various non-aquatic animals (including mammals) were available for purchase. Third, the sequence identity between 2019-nCoV and its close relatives bat-SL-CoVZC45 and bat-SL-CoVZXC21 was less than 90%, which is reflected in the relatively long branch between them. Hence, bat-SL-CoVZC45 and bat-SL-CoVZXC21 are not direct ancestors of 2019-nCoV. Fourth, in both SARS-CoVand MERS-CoV, bats acted as the natural reservoir, with another animal (masked palm civet for SARS-CoV35and dromedary camels for MERS-CoV)36 acting as an intermediate host, with humans as terminal hosts. Therefore, on the basis of current data, it seems likely that the 2019-nCoV causing the Wuhan outbreak might also be initially hosted by bats, and might have been transmitted to humans via currently unknown wild animal(s) sold at the Huanan seafood market.

Previous studies have uncovered several receptors that different coronaviruses bind to, such as ACE2 for SARS-CoV29 and CD26 for MERS-CoV.30 Our molecular modelling showed structural similarity between the receptor-binding domains of SARS-CoV and 2019-nCoV. Therefore, we suggest that 2019-nCoV might use ACE2 as the receptor, despite the presence of amino acid mutations in the 2019-nCoV receptor-binding domain. Although a previous study using HeLa cells expressing ACE2 proteins showed that 2019-nCoV could employ the ACE2 receptor,37 whether these mutations affect ACE2 binding or change receptor tropism requires further study.

Recombination has been seen frequently in coronaviruses.1 As expected, we detected recombination in the Sarbecoviruses analysed here. Our results suggest that recombination events are complex and are more likely occurring in bat coronaviruses than in 2019-nCoV. Hence, despite its occurrence, recombination is probably not the reason for emergence of this virus, although this inference might change if more closely related animal viruses are identified.

In conclusion, we have described the genomic structure of a seventh human coronavirus that can cause severe pneumonia and have shed light on its origin and receptor-binding properties. More generally, the disease outbreak linked to 2019-nCoV again highlights the hid-den virus reservoir in wild animals and their potential to occasionally spill over into human populations.
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1580825250512.png
 
www.biorxiv.org

Full-genome evolutionary analysis of the novel corona virus (2019-nCoV) rejects the hypothesis of emergence as a result of a recent recombination event

Background A novel coronavirus (2019-nCoV) associated with human to human transmission and severe human infection has been recently reported from the city of Wuhan in China. Our objectives were to characterize the genetic relationships of the 2019-nCoV and to search for putative recombination...
www.biorxiv.org www.biorxiv.org

Abstract
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Background A novel coronavirus (2019-nCoV) associated with human to human transmission and severe human infection has been recently reported from the city of Wuhan in China. Our objectives were to characterize the genetic relationships of the 2019-nCoV and to search for putative recombination within the subgenus of sarbecovirus.

Methods Putative recombination was investigated by RDP4 and Simplot v3.5.1 and discordant phylogenetic clustering in individual genomic fragments was confirmed by phylogenetic analysis using maximum likelihood and Bayesian methods.

Results Our analysis suggests that the 2019-nCoV although closely related to BatCoV RaTG13 sequence throughout the genome (sequence similarity 96.3%), shows discordant clustering with the Bat-SARS-like coronavirus sequences. Specifically, in the 5’-part spanning the first 11,498 nucleotides and the last 3’-part spanning 24,341-30,696 positions, 2019-nCoV and RaTG13 formed a single cluster with Bat-SARS-like coronavirus sequences, whereas in the middle region spanning the 3’-end of ORF1a, the ORF1b and almost half of the spike regions, 2019-nCoV and RaTG13 grouped in a separate distant lineage within the sarbecovirus branch.

Conclusions The levels of genetic similarity between the 2019-nCoV and RaTG13 suggest that the latter does not provide the exact variant that caused the outbreak in humans, but the hypothesis that 2019-nCoV has originated from bats is very likely. We show evidence that the novel coronavirus (2019-nCov) is not-mosaic consisting in almost half of its genome of a distinct lineage within the betacoronavirus. These genomic features and their potential association with virus characteristics and virulence in humans need further attention.
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