Physicians in south China's Guangdong Province have found evidence of the coronavirus in the specimen samples of severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS) patients.

"It marks a breakthrough in Guangdong's search for the cause of the SARS epidemic," said an official of the Guangdong Disease Prevention and Control Center.

The coronavirus, named for its crown-like appearance in electron microscope imagery, is widely believed to be the possible cause of SARS.

The medical experiment is still going on.

(Xinhua News Agency April 12, 2003)