Scientist from Wuhan lab warns more deadly variants are set to emerge
Wuhan based shi Zhengli is one of the world’s top researchers on coronaviruses and has discovered dozens of deadly viruses.
Now, in a new interview, she has warned that more deadly variants of Covid could sweep the globe amid fears of a catastrophic fresh mutation.
Speaking to journalist the scientist said: “As the number of infected cases has just become too big, this allowed the novel coronavirus more opportunities to mutate and select.
“New variants will continue to emerge.”
It comes after claims that a new Covid mutant could emerge which could kill more than a third of the people it infects.
Documents published by the Scientific Advisory Group for Emergencies (SAGE) said that future strains of the novel coronavirus could be as deadly as MERS.
In such a scenario, the virus could kill 35 per cent of those it infects.
The panel, which advises the government on its pandemic response, warned that such mutations are most likely to occur when the virus is widely spread – as it is currently in the UK.
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