Scientists searching for the origins of COVID-19 have zeroed in on a short list of animals that possibly helped spread it to people.

Genetic evidence from a new report suggests the coronavirus pandemic most likely spilled over from animals in the Wuhan market.

A new study supports the theory that the coronavirus that caused the COVID-19 pandemic originated from Hunan Seafood Wholesale wet market in Wuhan, China.

The samples were collected by Chinese officials in the early stages of Covid and are one of the most scientifically valuable sources of information on the origins of the pandemic. An early link with the Huanan Seafood Wholesale Market was established when patients appeared in hospitals in Wuhan with a mystery pneumonia.

After an in-depth analysis of the genetic material from hundreds of swabs taken from the walls, floors, machines and drains inside the Huanan Seafood Wholesale Market in Wuhan, China — a site that’s been described as an epicenter of early spread of Covid-19 — scientists say they now know exactly which species of animals were in the same area where investigators also found the most positive samples the virus that causes Covid-19.

Genetic tracing at the Huanan Seafood Market supports hypothesis that the COVID pandemic spread from animals there.

Genetic testing on samples collected during the earliest days of the covid-19 outbreak suggests it is likely that the virus spread from animals to humans at the Huanan seafood market