Isolation and Characterization of a Novel Bat Coronavirus Closely Related to the Direct Progenitor of Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus

Abstract
We report the isolation and characterization of a novel bat coronavirus which is much closer to the SARS coronavirus (SARS-CoV) in genomic sequence than others previously reported, particularly in the S gene. Cell entry and susceptibility studies indicated that this virus can use ACE2 as receptor and infect animal and human cell lines. Our results provide further evidence of bat origin of the SARS-CoV and highlight the likelihood of future bat coronavirus emergence in humans.
Funding Information
  • National Natural Science Foundation of China (81290341, 31321001)
  • Minister of Science and Technology of the People's Republic of China (2014ZX10004001-003, 2013FY113500)
  • HHS | National Institutes of Health (NIAID R01AI110964)
  • National Research Foundation Singapore (NRF2012NRF-CRP001-056)