It was also noted that the ganglioside-binding domain of the NTD is fully conserved in bat RaTG13, which indicates a close relationship between the bat coronavirus and the human isolates that are currently circulating around the world. However, the motif is slightly different in other bat- and human-related coronaviruses (Fig. 10), suggesting a recent evolution which could explain, at least in part, why SARS-CoV-2 is more contagious than previously characterized human coronaviruses.