This paper has now been published here: https://www.nature.com/articles/s41591-020-0820-9

The published version includes updates and corrections and should be considered the final version (it is also Open Access).

The Proximal Origin of SARS-CoV-2

Kristian G. Andersen1,2*, Andrew Rambaut3, W. Ian Lipkin4, Edward C. Holmes5 & Robert F. Garry6,7

1Department of Immunology and Microbiology, The Scripps Research Institute, La Jolla, CA 92037, USA.

2Scripps Research Translational Institute, La Jolla, CA 92037, USA.

3Institute of Evolutionary Biology, University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh, UK.

4Center for Infection and Immunity, Mailman School of Public Health of Columbia University, New York, New York, USA.

5Marie Bashir Institute for Infectious Diseases and Biosecurity, School of Life and Environmental Sciences and School of Medical Sciences, The University of Sydney, Sydney, Australia.

6Tulane University, School of Medicine, Department of Microbiology and Immunology, New Orleans, LA, USA.

7Zalgen Labs, LCC, Germantown, MD, USA.

*Corresponding author:

Kristian G. Andersen

Department of Immunology and Microbiology,

The Scripps Research Institute,

La Jolla, CA 92037,

USA.

Since the first reports of a novel pneumonia (COVID-19) in Wuhan city, Hubei province, China there has been considerable discussion and uncertainty over the origin of the causative virus, SARS-CoV-2. Infections with SARS-CoV-2 are now widespread in China, with cases in every province. As of 14 February 2020, 64,473 such cases have been confirmed, with 1,384 deaths attributed to the virus. These official case numbers are likely an underestimate because of limited reporting of mild and asymptomatic cases, and the virus is clearly capable of efficient human-to-human transmission. Based on the possibility of spread to countries with weaker healthcare systems, the World Health Organization has declared the COVID-19 outbreak a Public Health Emergency of International Concern (PHEIC). There are currently neither vaccines nor specific treatments for this disease.

See here for full text: https://www.nature.com/articles/s41591-020-0820-9