Month: November 2020

(Global Times)08:16, June 22, 2020

The novel coronavirus found in Beijings recent outbreak at Xinfadi market has come from Europe, but it is older than Europes most recent virus, said Chinese health officials.

Although the coronavirus found in Beijings Xinfadi market has come from Europe, it differs with their current outbreak, as it is older than the current European coronavirus, according to preliminary research results, said Zhang Yong, assistant director of National Institute for Viral Disease Control and Prevention of the Chinese Center for Disease Control and Prevention, according to the website of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Commission for Discipline Inspection (CCDI).

The large amounts of samples found in Xinfadi wholesale market indicate that the virus has been around for some time. If it had only just arrived in the city for a short period of time, there may not have been so many positive samples found; however, we need more data before making an informed decision about its origin, Zhang said.

Genomic epidemiology is the one of the main methods used to determine the lifespan of the virus. We need to first sequence the whole genome, before putting all the different viruses together to see which virus has more mutations; that is, those with more mutations normally suggest an updated virus, whereas those with less mutations closer to the original virus, and they are much older, circulating for a longer period of time compared to recently discovered viruses, Liu said, adding that some calculation also needs to be completed using mathematical models.

Gao Fu, director of the Chinese Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), said on Tuesday that the Beijings recent outbreak probably did not occur in late May or early June, but it probably started spreading a month earlier.

In this specific outbreak, many asymptomatic or mild cases were detected, and that is why the environment has such a large amount of recorded samples, said Gao.

In fact, the novel coronavirus will spread more easily in dark, humid, and polluted environments, which may catch some residents unexpected. If locals at the wholesale markets had been infected, it would have likely been exposed to many people very quickly, Gao added.

In regard to the virus first transmission into the country, there are several possibilities being discussed. For example, the virus may have remained in imported frozen foods, and did not mutate due to frozen environment throughout the entire storage and transportation period, from overseas all the way to China, Zhang said.

It is also possible that the virus may have been lurking in dark, humid environments, which have not been properly disinfected and sterilized, before it was then exposed to local residents, causing its slow evolution. In the end, what we see is that this virus is closer to the old European virus, Zhang said.

Epidemiological investigation and big data may find connections between cases, but it may also fail to determine which individuals have been spreading the virus. We hope that through laboratory tests and genome sequence analysis, that we can learn the transmission routes, Zhang said.

The Institute is taking the lead in establishing a nationwide virus monitoring and tracing system based on the entire viral genome, so as to deal with the current problems surrounded with virus traceability, which is a matter deeply related to national security, Zhang said

Chinese scientists are working day and night to find out exactly how did the virus from Europe arrive at Beijings Xinfadi market.

(Xinhua)15:28, June 27, 2020

BEIJING, June 27 (Xinhua) — Chinas national observatory on Saturday issued a yellow alert for rainstorms as heavy downpours continue to batter large swathes of the country.

According to the National Meteorological Center, heavy rain and rainstorms are expected to lash Sichuan, Guizhou, Hunan, Shaanxi, Henan and Hubei in the next 24 hours starting from 8 a.m. Saturday.

Some areas will experience downpours with up to 70 mm of hourly rainfall, the center said, warning that parts of Henan and Hubei will see up to 280 mm of daily precipitation.

The center urged local authorities to step up emergency response and guard against possible disasters such as landslides.

China has a four-tier color-coded weather warning system, with red representing the most severe, followed by orange, yellow and blue. Saturdays yellow alert was an upgrade from the blue one issued Friday, and the center has issued rainstorm alerts for the subsequent 26 days.

Since June, continuous downpours have lashed large parts of southern China and the water levels of many rivers in the affected areas exceeded the danger mark.

Ministry of Water Resources has called for all-out efforts to prevent floods and has dispatched teams to affected areas to facilitate flood prevention and control.

(Xinhua)10:36, June 27, 2020

Passengers enter the Shanghai Hongqiao Railway Station on June 25, the first day of the three-day Dragon Boat Festival holiday. [Photo/Xinhua]

BEIJING — Passenger trips on trains reached 7.53 million on Thursday, the first day of the three-day Dragon Boat Festival holiday, official data showed Friday.

The number is the highest of daily railway passenger trips after this years Spring Festival travel rush, according to the China State Railway Group Co., Ltd.

The company expects 5.22 million railway trips on Friday.

Railway departments have put more trains into operation to handle a spike in trips for tourism and family visits and enhanced anti-epidemic measures to ensure passengers safety, said the company.

(Xinhua)08:57, June 28, 2020

BEIJING, June 27 (Xinhua) — Chinese authorities have decided to further beef up intellectual property rights (IPR) assistance, with focuses on the assistance to small firms and companies in exhibition and e-commerce sectors.

More will be done to help micro, small and medium-sized enterprises to safeguard their legal rights, and IPR assistance will also go to exhibition, e-commerce and other enterprises, according to a guideline released by the National Intellectual Property Administration.

The guideline also called for improving overseas assistance services, and encouraged universities and social organizations to participate in IPR assistance.

In recent years, China has set up 31 IPR protection centers, 20 fast rights-protection centers and 76 IPR assistance centers.

(Xinhua)09:04, June 28, 2020

BEIJING, June 27 (Xinhua) — The Chinese capital has issued fresh guidelines on COVID-19 containment, calling on its residents to continue to wear masks, maintain social distancing and wash hands frequently.

Masks have been made compulsory in hospitals, crowded scenic spots and public transports, according to Beijings disease control and prevention center.

The guidelines stipulate that residents with respiratory infections should avoid going to public places and if they do under unavoidable circumstances, they must wear masks.

People are advised to wash their hands frequently when processing raw meat, poultry, or aquatic products, and keep unwashed hands away from the mouth, nose, and eyes, according to the guidelines.

Besides, members of the public are asked to cooperate with health monitoring at residential compounds, workplaces and other public facilities.

Since June 11, the Chinese capital has seen a resurgence in locally-transmitted COVID-19 cases, prompting the municipal government to tighten containment measures.