SARS-CoV-2 Coronavirus Found in the USA in December 2019

The findings of a new study syndicated by the U.S. CDC suggests that the 'SARS-CoV-2 coronavirus may have been introduced into (9) states in the USA prior to January 19, 2020.'

Published by the Clinical Infectious Diseases journal on November 30, 2020, these researchers determined if SARS-CoV-2 reactive antibodies were present in residual archived samples from 7,389 routine blood donations collected by the American Red Cross from December 13, 2019, to January 17, 2020. Eighty-four samples had neutralizing activity, 1 had S1 binding activity, and 1 had a receptor-binding domain / Ace2 blocking activity greater than 50%, suggesting the presence of anti-SARS-CoV-2-reactive antibodies.

The states of California, Connecticut, Iowa, Massachusetts, Michigan, Oregon, Rhode Island, Washington, and Wisconsin participated in this study.