A newly identified bat coronavirus, HKU5-CoV-2, has been found to have the potential to infect humans, according to research published in the scientific journal Cell. The virus was discovered by a Chinese research team led by virologist Shi Zhengli, in collaboration with the Wuhan Institute of Virology, the Guangzhou Laboratory, and the Guangzhou Academy of Sciences.

Researchers found that HKU5-CoV-2 uses the ACE2 receptor to infect cells, the same mechanism used by SARS-CoV-2, the virus responsible for COVID-19. This characteristic makes it more likely to infect human cells compared to other coronaviruses.