In a recent research carried out by group of researchers from University of Colombo and Robert Koch Institute in Germany it was revealed that two cave-dwelling Sri Lankan bat species R. leschenaultii and M. fuliginosus have Alpha and Beta subgroups of Corona Viruses in them. Today many media reports highlighted this finding as a discovery of Alpha and Beta variants of SARS nCov2 or the COVID 19 virus. But this is totally a different as these researchers have detected only two of the subgroups of the huge Coronavirus family.
Coronaviruses (CoV) are a group of enveloped, single-stranded RNA viruses that belong to the order Nidovirales, family Coronaviridae. These viruses are divided into four major groups as alpha, beta, gamma and delta coronaviruses, From these groups only the alpha and beta coronaviruses groups contain viruses that can infect humans.
Alpha sub group of the Coronavirus family include viruses like Human coronavirus 229E and Human Coronavirus NL63 nd many other viruses that infect mammals especially. But more deadly coronaviruses like SARS, and MERS are included in the Beta Coronavirus group. So the SARS nCOV2 virus which is responsible for COVID 19 pandemic is also from this Beta Coronavirus group.
But other two subgroups Gamacoronaviruses and Deltacoronaviruses are found to be infectious only in birds and some mammals.
First Detected in 2017
Way before the COVID 19 pandemic started in Wuhan, China a research carried out by a group of researchers including Dr. Wasana Kudagammana, Prof. Vasanthi Thevanesam and Prof. Malik Peries, it was able to reveal that the excrete from the Common Flying Fox, one of the largest bat species found in Sri Lanka contain RNA that are similar to viral RNA from Alpha and Beta groups of coronaviruses. In their publication they mention “they might evolve to become harmful to humans with public health implications.”
In this years research the team has investigated different bat species living in gian cave system called Wavul Galge cave in Koslanda, Sri Lanka. During the study they had collected 396 rectal swab and fecal samples from bats belonging to Miniopterus, Rousettus, Hipposideros and Rhinolophus Species of bats. Out of those 396 samples 33 samples were positive for Coronaviruses. Genomic sequencing and analysis of those positive samples had mapped those Coronaviruses under Alpha and Beta sub groups.
Local Media Got it Wrong
Many media outlets today highlighted this research as a discovery of Alpha and Beta variants of COVID-19 causing SARS nCov2 virus. But the detected viruses are not the COVID 19 causing virus but a group of viruses that belong to the virus family in which SARS nCoV virus is also a part of.
