A Chinese team of scientists has found previously unknown viruses from rodents that have the potential to spread to people, triggering the next pandemic risk. The viruses were discovered in 682 anal and mouth swab samples collected from 341 rodents in Hainan Province, China, between 2017 and 2021 by teams from the Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences and Peking Union Medical College. One of the viruses was SARS-CoV-2, which was responsible for the COVID-19 epidemic (1^✔ ✔Trusted Source
Chinese Scientists Find 8 New Viruses From Rodents, Sparking Pandemic Risk

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Novel Viruses that Could Infect Humans

The findings, published in the journal Virologica Sinica by the Chinese Society for Microbiology (CSM), revealed that the viruses belonged to 22 different families, including arenavirus, coronavirus, astrovirus, pestivirus, parvovirus, and papillomavirus. The infections had a “high probability” of infecting humans if they crossed the species barrier, according to the researchers. They advocated for more research on the viruses to discover their specific effects on humans.

New Coronavirus, Pestivirus, Parvovirus and Papillomavirus

A new coronavirus called CoV-HMU-1 was discovered to be a betacoronavirus, a subgenre of coronaviruses that includes COVID. Two new pestiviruses, which are related to yellow fever and dengue; a new astrovirus, a family of viruses that cause infections like stomach bugs; two new parvoviruses, which can cause flu-like symptoms; and two new papillomaviruses, a family of pathogens that can cause genital warts and cancer in people, were discovered in other groups of viruses. The researchers also discovered new pestiviruses and parvoviruses in Edwards’ long-tailed giant rat and the Sikkim rat species, neither of which had previously been recognized to harbor the infections.

Expansion of Viral Classification and Host Range

“The results expand our knowledge of viral classification and host range and suggest there are highly diverse, undiscovered viruses that have evolved independently in their unique wildlife hosts in inaccessible areas,” the researchers said in the paper. “If these viruses cross the host barrier, they are highly possible to cause zoonosis. The pathogenicity and associated impact of these novel viruses on humans and animals should be evaluated in further studies.”