Experts are scrambling to understand clusters of the normally rare disease that have been reported in Europe and North America in the last month.

Canadian researchers identify a highly mutated variant of the virus in white-tailed deer and link it to a human COVID-19 case in the region—though they emphasize that the infection risk to people is low.

Three studies that analyzed samples from Wuhan’s Huanan Seafood Wholesale Market add to evidence that SARS-CoV-2 has zoonotic origins.

Researchers used sequencing data and phenotypic traits to predict which of 5,400 species were most likely to be susceptible to contracting and spreading the virus back to humans.

Multiple white tailed deer tested positive for SARS-CoV-2 likely transmitted from humans, a study finds, indicating the species could act as a reservoir for the virus.

A patient caught the rare disease in Nigeria before flying through two US airports, exposing more than 200 people from 27 states.

Two viruses from dogs and pigs were isolated from human patients, but neither was proven to cause severe disease or to transmit to other people.

A letter signed by 18 researchers argues that hypotheses about zoonotic spillover or accidental lab release both “remain viable” in the absence of additional evidence.

Researchers involved in a long-term project to identify viruses of concern have now assessed the risk factors that could help forecast which pathogens are the most likely to spillover from wildlife to people.

Sam Wilson discusses a user-friendly set of resources that he and his collaborators developed to aid labs pivoting to study COVID-19.

A study proposes that habitat for bats—and their accompanying coronaviruses—has increased in southern Asia over the last century, but experts debate the reliability of the analysis.

An investigation by the World Health Organization into the origins of COVID-19 will instead focus on the virus’s animal origins and the possibility of spread through frozen foods.

Whole genome sequencing of the virus infecting the farm animals showed that it spread from the workers to the mink and back, indicating that an animal could serve as a viral reservoir.

Government authorities say because the animals are good hosts of the novel coronavirus, and this new viral variant could undermine vaccine efforts against COVID-19, they are destroying the nation's entire stock of mink.

Animals that can host pathogens dangerous to humans, such as rodents, birds, and bats, are proportionately more common in human-occupied spaces than in remote areas.

Preliminary modeling studies provide a shortlist of potential coronavirus intermediate host species.

Health authorities have ruled out the usual suspects, leading to fears that a novel virus is causing the infections in Hubei Province.

The USAID’s Predict program, which conducted animal virus surveillance and disease outbreak prevention training, is ending after its 10-year funding run.

Wide availability of infection control and diagnostic resources is required to control outbreaks early.