Fact Check: SARS-CoV-2 is the virus responsible for COVID-19.

Published July 2, 2025
by TruthOrFake AI
VERDICT
True

# Fact Check: "SARS-CoV-2 is the virus responsible for COVID-19." ## What We Know SARS-CoV-2 is indeed the virus responsible for COVID-19, a disease ...

Fact Check: "SARS-CoV-2 is the virus responsible for COVID-19."

What We Know

SARS-CoV-2 is indeed the virus responsible for COVID-19, a disease that emerged in late 2019. According to a study published in Nature Reviews Microbiology, SARS-CoV-2 is classified as a betacoronavirus and is closely related to coronaviruses found in bats, suggesting a zoonotic origin likely involving an intermediate host (source-3). The World Health Organization (WHO) has identified COVID-19 as the clinical syndrome associated with SARS-CoV-2 infection, which primarily affects the respiratory system (source-2).

The genetic analysis shows that SARS-CoV-2 shares approximately 80% of its genome with SARS-CoV, the virus responsible for the SARS outbreak in 2002-2003, indicating a significant relationship between the two viruses (source-1).

Analysis

The claim that SARS-CoV-2 is the virus responsible for COVID-19 is supported by multiple reputable sources. The Nature Reviews Microbiology article emphasizes that SARS-CoV-2 is a new human coronavirus that has led to a global pandemic, characterized by respiratory illness that can escalate to severe pneumonia and acute respiratory distress syndrome (source-6).

Moreover, the COVID-19 and SARS: Differences and similarities article outlines the clinical features of COVID-19, confirming that it is caused by the SARS-CoV-2 virus (source-1). The reliability of these sources is high, as they are peer-reviewed articles published in established medical journals and databases, which are widely recognized in the scientific community.

While some sources, such as Wikipedia, provide a general overview, they are less authoritative than peer-reviewed studies. However, they do corroborate the information regarding the relationship between SARS-CoV-2 and COVID-19 (source-4).

Conclusion

Verdict: True. The evidence clearly supports the claim that SARS-CoV-2 is the virus responsible for COVID-19. This conclusion is based on extensive genetic analysis and clinical observations documented in multiple peer-reviewed studies, confirming the direct link between the virus and the disease.

Sources

  1. COVID‐19 and SARS: Differences and similarities - PMC
  2. COVID-19, SARS and MERS: are they closely related? - PMC
  3. SARS-CoV-2 and COVID-19
  4. SARS-CoV-2
  5. Characteristics of SARS-CoV-2 and COVID-19
  6. The evolution of SARS-CoV-2 | Nature Reviews Microbiology

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Fact Check: SARS-CoV-2 is the virus responsible for COVID-19. | TruthOrFake Blog