Boston University researchers claim to have developed new, more lethal COVID strain in lab

[QvQ]

Bat virus in a wet market in China? Do Chinese eat bats?

 

[Matt5]

Researchers’ tests of lab-made version of Covid virus draw scrutiny

The original COVID virus killed 100% of mice. This new one kills 80% of mice.

"Erbelding noted, however, that some of the media coverage of the study over-estimates the risk the work may have posed. “That 80% kill rate, that headline doesn’t tell the whole story,” she said. “Because Wuhan” — the original strain — “killed all the mice.”"

 

[Bradskii]

Are you not alarmed? Or has the years of COVID fear mongering left you numb?

Dunno about Wing but as I noticed that it was a Fox News story apparently lifted directly from the UK's Daily Mail, I was more mildly amused that anyone would take this story at face value without spending a few more seconds to check its veracity.

If the headline was actually true then it would be the most dangerous risk to civilisation since the Cuban missile crisis. Why on earth didn't you investigate further? Did you actually think it was true?

 

[Bradskii]

Bat virus in a wet market in China? Do Chinese eat bats?

Fruit Bat Soup: The Traditional Palau Delicacy

Taste like chicken apparently.

 

[KCfromNC]

Is this not gain of function research?

Given it is less lethal than one of the strains the researchers started with, it is literally the opposite.

 

[KCfromNC]

Researchers’ tests of lab-made version of Covid virus draw scrutiny

The original COVID virus killed 100% of mice. This new one kills 80% of mice.

"Erbelding noted, however, that some of the media coverage of the study over-estimates the risk the work may have posed. “That 80% kill rate, that headline doesn’t tell the whole story,” she said. “Because Wuhan” — the original strain — “killed all the mice.”"

More detail here :

It was also tested in mice that are “exquisitely sensitive” to SARS-CoV-2 because they have been engineered so their lung cells are packed with the receptor that SARS-CoV-2 uses to break into human cells, Neil noted. The scientists forced a huge amount of virus up the noses of the mice, far more than a person would typically encounter. As a result, the mouse mortality rate of 80% was far higher than the human mortality from the original SARS-CoV-2 variant, which is about 1%.
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Science | AAAS