What are you looking for next?

In the autopsy for the Feb. 6 case, all they needed to find to confirm that this person had Covid-19 was some fragments of the virus’s genes.

If you really want to know more, you need the whole genome — all the genetic material in the virus. Then, looking at the mutations, you can see where the virus came from and you can start getting some guesses about how it got there.

But we’re dealing here with a deceased person. The virus in their remains is breaking down.

Still, it’s possible that scientists may be able to extract enough virus to put the genome back together. I’m hoping for that.

That’s it for this briefing. See you next time. — Carole

Thank you

To Melissa Clark for the recipe, and to Theodore Kim and Jahaan Singh for the rest of the break from the news. Andrea Kannapell, the Briefings editor, wrote today’s Back Story. You can reach the team at briefing@nytimes.com.

P.S.

• We’re listening to “The Daily.” Our latest episode is about protests in the U.S. against stay-at-home orders.

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