Researchers in China have been working with a mutant coronavirus strain, and recently shared a study that found a 100% mortality rate in hACE2 mice ("humanized" mice that were engineered to have genetic makeup that is similar to humans). The study, shared on bioRxiv, focused on GX_P2V, one of two pangolin coronaviruses that were identified before the COVID-19 pandemic. Pangolins are scaly mammals that can be found in Asia and Africa. The researchers used a mutated version of GX_P2V, which infected the lungs, bones, eyes, tracheas, and brains of the mice.
After getting infected with the virus, the mice exhibited some alarming symptoms, including: "decrease in body weight," "hunched posture," and "sluggish movements." Additionally, the researchers noted that the mice's eyes turned white.
All of the mice died, and it happened fairly quickly — within eight days of being infected. “To the best of our knowledge, this is the first report showing that a SARS-CoV-2-related pangolin coronavirus can cause 100% mortality in hACE2 (humanized) mice, suggesting a risk for GX_P2V to spill over into humans,” the authors wrote.
Though the research seems concerning to some, some infectious disease experts pointed out why there's not currently a need to worry about the study. Dr. Kristin Englund told NewsNation that the study has not been peer-reviewed, and it was also a small study. Still, she believes it's important to pay attention to Chinese research on coronaviruses.
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The director of the Genetics Institute at the University College London also took to X, formerly known as Twitter, to share his thoughts on the study.
"I had a look at the preprint. It's a terrible study, scientifically totally pointless," Francois Balloux wrote on the platform. "I can see nothing of vague interest that could be learned from force-infecting a weird breed of humanised mice with a random virus. Conversely, I could see how such stuff might go wrong."
