Coronavirus: China not the origin of the disease, top scientist says
- Former Chinese CDC head epidemiologist says post-Sars monitoring systems meant the pathogen was first detected in Wuhan
- Assessment comes after Italian researchers found signs of the pathogen circulating in Italy months before it was picked up in China
“Wuhan was where the coronavirus was first detected but it was not where it originated,” Zeng Guang, former chief epidemiologist of the Chinese Centre for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), told an online academic conference on Thursday.
Zeng is the second senior Chinese epidemiologist who has weighed in on the controversial topic in recent weeks.
The comments come as a team assembled by the World Health Organisation investigates the origins of the coronavirus. The mission, which started late last month, began with online meetings between Chinese scientists and the WHO team, and was expected to include on-the-ground investigations at a later stage.
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Coronavirus hunters find new evidence pointing to the virus originating in Italy
Speaking at the conference organised by US publisher Cell Press and the Beijing Municipal Science and Technology Commission, Zeng noted “suspicious signs” from overseas related to the origins of the coronavirus, including positive test reports.