Amid theories about the possible origins of the novel coronavirus, scientific attention continues to consider the role of a Wuhan, China, wet market. Contact histories of a first cluster of patients at a Wuhan hospital in January 2020 pointed to the Huanan Seafood Wholesale Market as a likely origin point. Much remains to be understood about the path the virus took before being identified in Wuhan, including whether there were other routes of infection along with or prior to the outbreak associated with the market.
It was not clear whether live animals or infected vendors or shoppers may have brought the virus into the market, a World Health Official told a May 8 Geneva news briefing.