New research shows that the virus that causes COVID-19 is so tenacious, it binds to human cells 1,000 times tighter than similar pathogens.

Scientists found that the spike protein that surrounds SARS-CoV-2, the virus responsible for COVID-19, has a close relative in the bat coronavirus family. In fact, it's 97% similar genetically to the RaTG13 spike found in the bat coronavirus. The big difference, however, is that the SARS-CoV-2 protein is much more stable, and that's why its grip is so much tighter as it aggressively invades human cells.

According to Newsweek Health, researchers from the U.K's Francis Crick Institute said the way the spike so easily and firmly latches onto host cells may explain why the disease has been able to spread so far so quickly.

"The spike is the entry key that allows SARS-CoV-2 into human cells," researcher Antoni Wrobel said in a statement, according to Newsweek Health. The researchers said that their discovery doesn't clarify the origins of the novel coronavirus but suggests it's a combination of several viruses joining together and evolving through different hosts.

This theory bolsters previous research that suggests that several animal species contributed to the genetic makeup of the new virus. According to The Conversation, certain species of bats and pangolins have genetic sequences similar to SARS-CoV-2, and these comparisons suggest that the new coronavirus is a recombination of at least two different previously existing viruses that have the potential to infect a new host species.