Civet cats not the main source of SARS

October 6, 2004

Sydney | October 05, 2004 3:42:23 PM IST

Contrary to the earlier studies that pinpointed the

consumption of civet cats as the main cause of SARS in

the country, Chinese researchers have found that these

felines may not be the original source of the disease.

According to ABC Online, Dr Linfa Wang, a member of

the World Health Organisation SARS Scientific

Investigative Committee and Animal Reservoir Group,

announced the findings at the recent Australian

Society for Microbiology National Conference in

Sydney.

A team led by Dr Linfa Wang, a member of the World

Health Organisation SARS Scientific Investigative

Committee and Animal Reservoir Group, found that civet

cats, widely eaten in Southern China, were only a link

in the chain of transmission of the deadly SARS virus.

Wang said that while the 2003 research supported the

view that civets were responsible for transmitting the

virus to humans, it was wrongly interpreted by the

public and some government officials as proof that the

civet was the natural host. " From early days when the

virus was isolated from civets people got excited and

carried away with thinking, is this animal? ... the

natural reservoir?, " he was quoted as saying.

" What I am trying to say now is that we have more

evidence to suggest against that, " he added.

In his experiment Wang found that up to 80 percent of

the cats in the market tested positive for the SARS

virus but only two examples out of the 40 farm cats

showed " some weak reactivity " , stressing upon the fact

that civets were only a link in the chain.

Wang further said that the original animal host of

SARS remained unknown and could turn out to be a rare

animal traded in small numbers that spread the virus

to other animals in the markets including civets.

(ANI)

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