Coronavirus Expert Questions Animal Source for SARS

"If I look at the past history of the way coronaviruses behave, then I have to come to a logical conclusion that they are very species-specific and a coronavirus does not just jump from an animal to a person. If we look at the scientific evidence of what we know about coronaviruses, I could also make the argument that under the right conditions, under the right incubation conditions, that it could happen.
The mechanism is there.
But boy! It's like a trillion to one shot."

- Mark Jackwood, Ph.D., Avian Coronaviruses, University of Georgia, Athens

April 25, 2003  Athens, Georgia - Professor Mark Jackwood, Ph.D., studies bird coronaviruses in the College of Veterinary Medicine at the University of Georgia in Athens. One puzzle that he and his colleagues helped solve was why chickens vaccinated for a deadly avian infectious bronchitis known as DE072 (72nd virus isolate in Delaware) were still getting sick and dying. Dr. Jackwood and Professor Chang Wong Lee studied the birds' blood and discovered a different coronavirus they named "Georgia 98." 1998 was the year of the discovery. What caused the mutation from DE072 to GA98? The coronavirus's response to vaccinations.