The Chinese government is reportedly attempting to censor research by scientists into the origins of the coronavirus, as universities in Wuhan have reportedly published new requirements for academics seeking to publish studies on the topic.

According to a cached version of a since-deleted web page from the China University of Geosciences in Wuhan, requirements were updated so that scientists would need to have their study approved by China's Ministry of Science and Technology before publication, The Guardian reported on Saturday.

The newspaper also reviewed another document that appeared to be from the Renmin Hospital of Wuhan University that included the requirement. A separate cached webpage from Fudan University in Shanghai said that research into the virus should face "strict and serious" review.

Newsweek has reached out to a spokesperson for China's embassy in Washington, D.C. for comment, but they had not responded as of the time of publication.

The cached webpage from the China University of Geosciences explained that researchers must first seek the approval of the institution's academic committee. After that review process, the university said that studies "can only be published after the review by the Ministry of Science and Technology."

© NOEL CELIS/AFP/Getty A woman wearing a face mask walks in front of a drawing of Chinese President Xi Jinping on a wall at the Leishenshan Hospital that had offered beds for coronavirus patients in Wuhan, China on April 11 China has faced repeated internal and external accusations of censorship surrounding research into COVID-19, the disease caused by the coronavirus. Local Chinese officials in Wuhan also are known to have suppressed information about the initial outbreak, even detaining whistleblower doctor Li Wenliang. Wenliang later died from COVID-19, and Chinese authorities offered a "solemn apology" to the medical practitioner's family for how he had been treated.

Back in February, The New York Times shared videos of Chinese citizens warning that research into coronavirus was being censored and removed from the internet.

"My purpose is to make sure that all this information is not lost or deleted," one of the unidentified Chinese nationals said with her face covered in the clip.

"We don't know what information and when the authorities will censor," another unidentified person said. "So we are trying to be faster than the authorities."

Pictures: Coronavirus (COVID-19) outbreak around the world

U.S. government officials, and other international leaders, have criticized China for not being transparent about the coronavirus pandemic. Toronto-based cyber research group Citizen Lab reported in early March that Chinese social media had begun censoring keywords associated with the coronavirus as well as criticism of the government's response to the crisis, according to Reuters.

The precise origin of the coronavirus has not been fully established. But the virus was first discovered in Wuhan, which quickly became the original epicentre of a global pandemic. As of Sunday morning, there were nearly 1.79 million confirmed cases of coronavirus around the world, according to a tracker by Johns Hopkins University. Of those, more than 109,000 have died while over 411,000 have recovered. The U.S. became the new epicentre for the virus in March, and now has by far the highest number of confirmed cases, with more than 530,000 reported.