New Delhi, March 27: Indian scientists have released a microscopic view of the virus which has caused the lethal coronavirus pandemic. In a first of its kind of release, the scientists unveiled a microscopic image of the SARS-CoV-2 virus, which is responsible for the coronavirus infection disease-2019 (COVID-19). Catch live news updates related to the coronavirus pandemic in India and other parts of the world.

The image was taken after collecting the throat swabs of the first COVID-19 patient detected in India's Kerala, on January 30. The throat swabs samples, after laboratory testing, were found to be positive for coronavirus. The research on the swab continued further, with the scientists looking into the characteristics of SARS-CoV-2 virus.

The findings of the research, along with first visuals of the virus were released in the latest edition of the Indian Journal of Medical Research (IJMR) -- a peer-reviewed online open-access medical journal.

What Does COVID-19 Look Like? Here's The Image of SARS-CoV-2 Virus

The Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) is constantly working towards finding a cure or vaccine for the novel coronavirus. The medical body, along with its counterparts across the world, have not found a cure so far to the disease. In a recent press briefing, however, the ICMR suggested that doctors can prescribe hydrochlorique and ritonavir combination in certain cases.

India has so far recorded 724 cases of coronavirus, with the death toll jumping to 18 on Friday. So far, 45 patients have recovered, whereas, 661 are still infected -- with the condition of few feared to be critical. Globally, the pandemic has affected more than 500,000 people, whereas, the death toll has peaked to over 24,000.

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Mar 27, 2020 08:32 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).