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A scientist tests for the Corona Virus from a laboratory in Greece

U.S. State Department cables show that Embassy officials were concerned About the biosecurity at a virus laboratory in Wuhan, China. The laboratory is in the same city, where the Corona-Virus outbreak first came to the attention of The World .

And President Donald Trump said that the US is seeking government in unconfirmed reports that The Virus escaped from a laboratory.

So What , if anything, does this, our understanding of the current pandemic?

What do The Cables say?

The Washington Post newspaper has reported that information from diplomatic cables. They show that in the year 2018, which were sent to US the science diplomats, which on repeated visits to a Chinese research institution. Officials

The column that says the officials were concerned About the security and management weaknesses in the Wuhan Institute of Virology (WIV), and called for more help.

It also claims diplomats were concerned, laboratory-research bat corona viruses, the risk of a new Sars-like pandemic could be. The newspaper says the cable fueled recent discussions in the U.S. government About whether the WIV or a different laboratory in Wuhan, The Source of The Virus behind the current pandemic could be.

In addition, Fox News has also

The outbreak of the issued came to light at the end of Last Year , when the first cases were in connection with a food market in Wuhan. But despite the rampant speculation online, there is no evidence of any kind that the Sars-CoV-2 virus (which causes Covid-19) was released accidentally from a laboratory.

What kind of security measures in the labs use?

laboratories to study viruses and bacteria follow a system, known as a BSL-standards, where BSL stands for Biosafety Level.

There are four stages, the investigated depending on the types of biological agents, and the containment precautions required to isolate them.

Biosafety Level 1 (BSL-1) is the lowest and is used by labs studying known biological agents that are not a threat to the people.

The containment precautions you increase through The Levels Until You arrive, Biosafety Level 4 (BSL-4), which is the highest and reserved for pathogens for the labs dealing with The Most dangerous disease for the few available vaccines or treatments for ebola, Marburg virus, and - in the case of only two institutions in the United States and Russia , smallpox.

The BSL standards to be used internationally, but with a few cosmetic variations.

"The Russians, for example, label your highest containment laboratories 1 and the lowest containment laboratories than 4, so the exact opposite of The Standard , but the actual practices and infrastructure requirements are similar," says Dr. Filippa Lentzos, a Biosafety expert at King's College, London .

labs like this in Hungary follow a system of standards with four levels. These levels are not, on the basis of the arrangements required to make the handling of various pathogens

enforced But while The World Health organization (WHO), the standards by any contracts.

"they were designed to infect, in The Best interest to work safely, for laboratory workers, who do not want to themselves or their community and for The Environment to avoid accidental releases," says Dr. Lentzos.

The 'stick' But it adds: "with the purse. If you want to projects with international partners, they do require labs to, to certain standards. Or if you are required to sell products in The Market , or certain services, e. g. tests, you will also and operated to international standards. "

in fact, the WIV had received support from the United States, together with the support of American research institutes. The cable recommended what you even more help.

What types of security failures were to describe the cable?

The short answer is that we don't know from The Information in the Washington Post. But, generally speaking, there are several ways that security measures are not complied with in labs dealing with biological agents.

According to Dr Lentzos, these include: "Who has access to the laboratory, training and refresher training of scientists and technicians, the procedures for the accounting, signs, inventory lists of pathogens, accident notification practices, emergency procedures. "

A series of early cases in the pandemic But have been with the Wuhan seafood market

how unusual the concerns in the diplomatic cables were?

Accidents Happen . In 2014, forget, the in a research center in the vicinity of Washington. In 2015, the U.S. military accidentally instead of dead spores, as many as nine laboratories throughout the country, and a military base in South Korea .

There are not differences in the safety standards, the large number of laboratories at the lower end of the BSL-scale, and many minor injuries can make it in The News .

But there are relatively few labs that are designated BSL-4. Wikipedia lists over 50 around The World , from the WIV, but there is no mandatory list.

they are built to very high standards, because they are The Most dangerous diseases known to science. As a result, they generally have good safety records. So all the concerns About procedures at one of these facilities would be More Than remarkable.

there Were previous claims of virus escapes from a lab?

Yes, almost as soon as The Novel coronavirus came to light, speculation - Much of it uninformed - About his creation.

An online theory that went viral in January, suggested The Virus could have been developed in a laboratory as a bioweapon. This allegation has been repeatedly dismissed by scientists, who - probably in the bats.

viruses can also be constructed for the purposes of basic Scientific research. For example, gain of function studies can enhance The Ability to examine improve, with the help of a pathogen is a disease causing, to how viruses in the future could mutate.

released, But a U.S. study of the coronavirus genome in March. "Through the comparison of the available genome-sequence data for the known coronavirus strains, we can determine that SARS-CoV-2 arose by natural processes," co-author Kristian Andersen , of Scripps research in California, said at The Time .

Then there is the allegation of an unintentional release of a natural virus from a laboratory. The close proximity of Wuhan seafood market, where the outbreak came to light at at least two institutions in the implementation of the research work on infectious diseases, fuelled speculation About a link.

The Virus is thought to have its origin in the animal world - Most likely in the bats

That the WIV had investigations to bat corona virus is a matter of public records. This work was completely legitimate, and published in international journals. Given the country's experience with the Sars outbreak in the early 2000s, should this come as no surprise.

Dr. Lentzos said, the question of their origin has been a "very difficult question", and added that "it has been quiet, behind-the-scene discussions. in the Biosafety expert of the community, the seafood market of origin, came very strongly from China".

But there is currently no evidence that any Research Institute in Wuhan, which was The Source of the Sars-CoV-2.

On Thursday, China foreign Ministry spokesman Zhao Lijian, told journalists The World -health-organization-officials "have said several times, there is no evidence that the new Corona-Virus in a lab".

President Donald Trump , is coming Under Fire over his management of the response to the pandemic, said that the U.S. government is the study of The Lab -theory.

in China has been repeatedly accused of, a lack of transparency in the early stages of the outbreak, and the Secretary of state, Mike Pompeo has said that Beijing must "Come Clean ", what do you know. to keep track of

in this war of words between the countries, the careful and largely invisible - Scientific work, The Origin of The Virus , more.

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Source of news: bbc.com