Coronavirus Genome Helping Russia Develop Fast Detection Tests - Russian Consulate

Beijing's timely transfer of the genome of the new coronavirus, which has already affected China and a number of other countries across the world, allowed Russian scientists to quickly develop short-term tests for detecting the virus in the human body, the Russian Consulate General in the southern Chinese city of Guangzhou said in a statement on Wednesday

BEIJING (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 29th January, 2020) Beijing's timely transfer of the genome of the new coronavirus, which has already affected China and a number of other countries across the world, allowed Russian scientists to quickly develop short-term tests for detecting the virus in the human body, the Russian Consulate General in the southern Chinese city of Guangzhou said in a statement on Wednesday.

"The Chinese side handed over the virus' genome to Russia, which allowed our scientists to develop within a short period snap tests that make it possible to identify the virus in the human body within two hours.

Russian and Chinese specialists have started developing a vaccine," the statement read.

The novel coronavirus was first detected in the central Chinese city of Wuhan in December. It has since killed over 130 people and infected more than 6,000 others in China, according to the country's National Health Commission. Despite efforts to contain the disease, cases have already been reported in Australia, Cambodia, France, Germany, Japan, Malaysia, Nepal, Singapore, Sri Lanka, South Korea, Taiwan, Thailand, the United States, and Vietnam.