MELBOURNE/NEW YORK/LONDON : The best minds in virology are trying to unravel a mystery: How did a lethal coronavirus jump from the wilds of rural China to major human population centers?
And what chain of genetic mutations produced a pathogen so perfectly adapted for stealth and mass transmission? Deciphering the creation story of SARS-CoV-2, as the virus now rampaging around the globe is known, is a crucial step toward arresting a pandemic that’s killed 270,000-plus and triggered what could be the worst economic collapse since the Great Depression.
While crash vaccine programs are underway in the US, Europe and China, an inoculation to ward off the virus may not be ready for months, and the jury’s out on potential treatments.