GENEVA: The World Health Organization unveiled Wednesday a team of scientists it wants to investigate new pathogens and preventing future pandemics 鈥� plus reviving the stalled probe into Covid-19鈥檚 origins.
The group of 26 experts will be charged with producing a new global framework for studies into the origins of emerging pathogens of epidemic and pandemic potential 鈥� and their remit includes SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes Covid-19 disease.
Besides the Covid-19 crisis, a growing number of high-risk pathogens have appeared or reappeared in recent years, including MERS, bird flu viruses, Lassa, Marburg and Ebola.
The WHO announced earlier this year that it would set up a Scientific Advisory Group for the Origins of Novel Pathogens (SAGO).
鈥淭he emergence of new viruses with the potential to spark epidemics and pandemics is a fact of nature, and while SARS-CoV-2 is the latest such virus, it will not be the last,鈥� said WHO chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus.
鈥淯nderstanding where new pathogens come from is essential for preventing future outbreaks.鈥�
The 26 members that the WHO has put forward were chosen from a field of more than 700 applications and are drawn from a range of scientific disciplines.
And the team the WHO has named is subject to a two-week public consultation.
They include Christian Drosten, the head of Berlin鈥檚 Institute of Virology; Yungui Yang of the Beijing Institute of Genomics; Jean-Claude Manuguerra of France鈥檚 Institut Pasteur; and Inger Damon from the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
Several of the experts were on the joint WHO-China scientific mission investigating the origins of Covid-19: Vladimir Dedkov, Farag Elmoubasher, Thea Fischer, Marion Koopmans, Hung Nguyen and John Watson.
The terms of reference say the group must give the WHO an independent evaluation of all available scientific and technical findings from global studies on the origins of Covid-19.
It must also advise the UN health agency on developing, monitoring and supporting the next series of studies into the origins of the virus. That could include 鈥渞apid advice鈥� on the WHO鈥檚 operational plans to implement the next series of studies into the pandemic鈥檚 origins, and advice on additional studies.
The pandemic has killed more than 4.85 million people and battered the global economy since the virus was first detected in the Chinese city of Wuhan in December 2019.
After much delay, a WHO team of international experts went to Wuhan in January 2021 to produce a first phase report, written in conjunction with their Chinese counterparts.
Their March report drew no firm conclusions, but ranked four hypotheses.
Most probable was that the virus jumped from bats to humans via an intermediate animal, it said. It judged a leak from the Wuhan virology laboratories was 鈥渆xtremely unlikely.鈥�
However, the investigation faced criticism for lacking transparency and access, and for not evaluating the lab-leak theory more deeply.
In August, China rejected the WHO鈥檚 calls for a renewed probe on the ground into the origins of Covid-19.
Maria Van Kerkhove, the WHO鈥檚 technical lead on Covid-19, said SAGO would urgently assess what was now known, what still remained unknown, and what rapidly needed to be done.
鈥淚 anticipate that the SAGO... will recommend further studies in China and potentially elsewhere,鈥� she told journalists.
鈥淭here鈥檚 no time to waste in this.鈥�
Michael Ryan, the WHO鈥檚 emergencies director, said it may be the 鈥渓ast chance to understand the origins of this virus鈥� in a collegiate manner.
Earlier Wednesday, Chen Xu, China鈥檚 ambassador to the UN in Geneva, told the UN correspondents鈥� association that SAGO鈥檚 work should not be 鈥減oliticized.鈥�
鈥淚f we are going to send teams to any other places, I believe it鈥檚 not to China because we have received international teams twice already,鈥� he said.
鈥淚t鈥檚 time to send teams to other places.鈥�