New bat virus Khosta-2 detected in Russia, may infect humans: All you need to know about the disease

As the menace of the Covid-19 pandemic is slowing down across the world, a new disease has been detected in Russia from the same family of viruses, which is likely to infect humans. As per Time Magazine reports, the Khosta-2 virus can soon spread to humans across the globe.

The newly-detected Khosta-2 virus has reportedly originated from Russian bats and belongs to the same sub-category of coronaviruses as SARS-CoV-2. The virus may also infect humans and evade the immunological defenses provided by the Covid-19 vaccine.

News reports have said that the Khosta-2 virus can cause a new threat to public health since studies state that the Khosta-2 virus already has the capabilities of penetrating human cells and infecting people.

Here is all you need to know about the Khosta-2 virus

According to studies and media reports, the Khosta-2 virus belongs to the same group of viruses as Covid-19 and has the capability of infecting humans. As per reports, the virus has emerged from Russian bats.

According to a study published by Washington State University, not only can the virus infect humans, but it can also dodge the immunity responses built up by the Covid-19 vaccines, creating a higher risk for humans.

The author of the study further said, “Our research further demonstrates that sarbecoviruses circulating in wildlife outside of Asia – even in places like western Russia where the Khosta-2 virus was found – also pose a threat to global health and ongoing vaccine campaigns against SARS-CoV-2.”

As of now, not much is known about the symptoms of the Khosta-2 virus but it is expected that the initial warning signs can be similar to that of Covid-19. Further, the fatality rate of the virus is also not known yet.

According to the WSU study, the Khosta-1 virus can pose minimal harm to people while the Khosta-2 virus can have more alarming symptoms in human beings.