Chinese scientists say they can prove that the virus that causes SARS jumped from civet cats to humans, but the World Health Organization is not convinced.

An official from the Guangzhou Centre for Disease Control and Prevention, said genetic testing has shown that the virus that killed more than 800 people, including 44 in Canada, came from civets.

The civet cat is distantly related to the feline cat.
(CBC)

"Our research has shown that the SARS coronavirus found in human victims is the same as the SARS coronavirus found in civet cats," said Wang Ming, China Daily reported.

Severe acute respiratory syndrome, or SARS, emerged in Guangdong in southern China in 2002, spreading to more than 8,000 people.

Scientists in Hong Kong previously suggested that the virus that causes SARS jumped to humans from civet cats, which are considered a delicacy in southern China.

The link has not been proven, and speculation has also turned toward bats and other animals.

Although experts with the World Health Organization also found evidence of the virus in cages civets had been kept, a spokeswoman for the public health agency said the Chinese research does not prove the link.

"What it shows is that the SARS coronavirus has been found in some civet cats. But we don't know how many civet cats, or whether it can be transmitted to humans," said Joanna Brent.

While the findings show it's possible for civets to transmit SARS to humans, they don't show that it ever happened, Brent said.

The research cited by the newspaper involved tests on six SARS-carrying civet cats found at a restaurant in 2004. The virus found in the civets was genetically similar to the virus detected in a female worker at the restaurant who was diagnosed with SARS.

In 2004, authorities in Guangdong banned the sale and consumption of civet cats, but the mongoose-like animal is still available for sale in the provincial capital of Guangzhou.