A new study has found that raccoon dogs in China have tested positive for the novel coronavirus, which has further strengthened the theory that the virus has a natural origin.
The study, which was conducted by researchers from the Chinese Academy of Sciences and published in the journal Science of the Total Environment, analyzed samples taken from raccoon dogs in the central Chinese province of Hubei.
The researchers found that all five raccoon dogs tested positive for the novel coronavirus, with four of them testing positive for the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2).
The study is the first to confirm the presence of SARS-CoV-2 in wild animals in China, and it is believed that the findings could help to shed light on the origin of the virus.
The virus is believed to have first emerged in the Chinese city of Wuhan in late 2019, and it has since spread around the world, causing a global pandemic.
The findings of the study are significant, as they suggest that the virus has a natural origin, rather than being the result of a laboratory accident.
The study also highlights the importance of monitoring wild animals for the virus, as they may be able to serve as an early warning system for the emergence of new diseases.