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COVID Wet Market
About COVID Wet Market
The Huanan Seafood Wholesale Market in Wuhan, China, was identified as the likely site of the initial SARS-CoV-2 spillover to humans. The market sold live wild animals including raccoon dogs, bamboo rats, and foxes. Environmental samples from the market tested positive for SARS-CoV-2 RNA, particularly in the section selling live wild animals. However, no animal host has been definitively identified. Chinese authorities closed and disinfected the market on January 1, 2020, which researchers have noted limited later investigation of animals sold there. The earliest known COVID cases in December 2019 were clustered around the market. However, some early cases had no market connection. The debate between natural origin and laboratory leak has been politically charged. The WHO China joint study in 2021 rated spillover through an intermediate host as likely to very likely but could not reach definitive conclusions. The origin of the virus remains under investigation.
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