What Germ Spillovers In New York Can Tell Us About The Hunt For COVID's Origins

U.S. intelligence agencies have spent the past 90 days looking into the origins of COVID-19.

Their investigation is meant to address a heated public debate on whether the SARS-CoV-2 coronavirus virus behind the pandemic was released from a lab, or through natural spillover from an animal host.

These agencies are expected to release a public version of their findings in the coming days. But The Wall Street Journal and The Washington Post are both reporting there was no conclusive answer in the final assessment delivered to President Biden earlier this week.

Meanwhile, many scientists still believe the coronavirus started naturally in animals before accidentally spilling over into humans.

WNYC's Sean Carlson spoke with science journalist Monique Brouillette about what animal spillovers closer to home can teach about investigations half a world away. 

Click "listen" in the player, and head to Gothamist for the full story.