'The hope is we're not caught off guard' again, B.C. researcher says of discovery of 9 new coronavirus species
A team of researchers led by a British Columbia university has uncovered several new species of coronavirus, some of which were found in unexpected places such as animal dung.
The discoveries, outlined in a news release Wednesday from the University of British Columbia, were made by a former UBC post-doctoral research fellow, who led an international team in an analysis of ribonucleic acid (RNA) sequencing data.rib
Artem Babaian led the study of 20 million gigabytes of gene sequence data, dubbed the Serratus Project. This data came from 5.7 million biological samples, UBC said.
"We’re entering a new era of understanding the genetic and spatial diversity of viruses in nature, and how a wide variety of animals interface with these viruses," Babaian said in the news release.
"The hope is we’re not caught off guard if something like SARS-CoV-2—the novel coronavirus that causes COVID-19— emerges again … The real goal is these infections are recognized so early that they never become pandemics."
The samples collected worldwide over a 13-year period included dung from several animals, as well as other sources, according to a summary from the school of the research published in the scientific journal Nature this week.
The research team phased the collection as coming from "every continent and ocean, and all kingdoms of life."
With the help of a "ridiculously powerful" supercomputer built by UBC and Amazon Web Services, the team said it found nearly 10 times more RNA viruses than were previously known.
In total, it said, the project found 132,000 RNA viruses. Only 15,000 were known before the Serratus Project.
The team also found nine new species of coronaviruses during study, which took 11 days and cost about $24,000.
As for what was learned, there were some challenges, the team wrote in the paper published in the journal.
"An important limitation for these analyses is that the nucleic acid reads do not prove that viral infection has occurred in the nominal host species. For example, we identified five libraries in which a porcine, avian, or bat coronavirus was found in plant samples," the team said.
The hope is this research, and the database created by the Serratus Project, will help "pave the way to rapidly identify virus spillover into humans," UBC said. The database can also be used to identify viruses impacting livestock, crops and endangered species, according to the school.
An example the 32-year-old gave was of a patient with an unexplained fever. He said that patient's blood could be sequenced, and the virus causing the fever could be compared to the Serratus Project database of existing viruses.
"You can now search through the database in about two minutes, and connect that virus to, say, a camel in sub-Saharan Africa sampled in 2012," Babaian said.
He called the research, which was sketched out on a napkin and started as a "fun" side project, the "most exciting scientific period of my life."
"There are two types of fun. Type 1 is smiling and fun. Type 2 is when you’re miserable while doing it but the memory shines, like rock climbing. In many ways Serratus is Type 2 fun. You just kind of have to believe it’s going to work out."
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
BREAKING Shooting outside of Drake's Bridle Path mansion, 1 person seriously injured: source
Toronto police are investigating a shooting that took place outside of Drake’s Bridle Path mansion early Tuesday morning, a source tells CP24.
Your body needs these three forms of movement every week
Movement is movement, right? Not exactly. Here’s what your body is looking for in addition to your morning walk or yoga session, according to experts.
'It looked so legit': Ontario man pays $7,700 for luxury villa found on Booking.com, but the listing was fake
An Ontario man says he paid more than $7,700 for a luxury villa he found on a popular travel website -- but the listing was fake.
Canadian cadets rock mullets and place second at U.S. military competition
Sporting mullets, Canadian Armed Forces officer cadets placed second in an annual military skills competition in the U.S.
The Met Gala was in full bloom with Zendaya, Jennifer Lopez, Mindy Kaling among the standout stars
The Met Gala and its fashionista A-listers on Monday included Jennifer Lopez, Zendaya and a parade of others in a swirl of flora and fauna looks on a green-tinged carpet lined by live foliage.
Quebec to limit sperm donations per donor after 3 men from same family father hundreds of children
Quebec is looking at tightening the regulations around sperm donation in the province following the release of a documentary that revealed three men from the same family fathered hundreds of children.
How to overcome 'savings guilt' when you're living paycheque to paycheque
As the higher cost of living continues to squeeze household budgets, many Canadians find they have even less left over at the end of every month to squirrel away for the future.
There's actually no such thing as vegetables. Here's why you should eat them anyway
The rumours are true: Vegetables aren't real — that is, in botany, anyway. While the term fruit is recognized botanically as anything that contains a seed or seeds, vegetable is actually a broad umbrella term.
Noelia Voigt resigns as Miss USA, citing her mental health
Noelia Voigt, who was crowned Miss USA in November 2023, has announced she is resigning from her role, saying the decision is in the best interest of her mental health.