Scientists in Australia have managed to grow the deadly novel coronavirus in a laboratory in hopes of studying the virus and expedite the development of the vaccine.
The breakthrough in medical science occurred at Peter Doherty Institute for Infection and Immunity in Melbourne where the scientists found a way to grow the dangerous virus in a high-security lab.
According to the reports, the experts had been working nonstop after successfully obtaining a sample of an infected person until they managed to grow it.
As the scientists have confirmed, growing the virus in the lab represents a major step forward in developing the vaccine and suppressing the outbreak.
Now, the contained virus will be forwarded to the World Health Organization who will distribute it to several labs across the globe in hopes that a vaccine for the novel coronavirus will be developed in less than two months.
While the Australian lab isn’t the first to manage to grow the virus, the Chinese lab that first succeeded in the task failed to provide other laboratories around the world with physical samples so that they could also start working on vaccine development.
As experts have explained, having the virus in a controlled physical form allows scientists to perform tests and see firsthand how the virus behaves and reacts in different conditions.
After Peter Doherty Institute secured the virus, co-deputy director Mike Catton called the news “fantastic.”
As Mr. Catton explained, the virus that has spread fear around the world is indeed dangerous but not as deadly as SARS, which cost 800 people their lives back in 2003, or Ebola, for example.
“SARS we know had a death rate of about 10 per cent. This coronavirus appears to be three per cent. My personal opinion is it will turn out to be lower than that,” he said in an interview with ABC.
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Replaced!