zlacker

"Look, dude," RNA mutates due to many environmental factors. It's why living organisms typically now use DNA and only short-term usage of RNA for copying purposes, certainly not as the primary data store.

RNA mutations mimicking proteins are precisely how a non-living entity can, like a bike-thief trying combinations randomly, unlock the lipid or protein sheaths on animal cells and gain direct access to the inputs of a genetic reproduction machine inside the cell.

So, aside from the fact that these folks only have some circumstantial evidence and woo to suggest a lab hypothesis, (not EVEN a theory, not EVEN a hypothesis, nay, mere speculation with a vested political axe to grind, hello) and that fact that all factual evidence of how all previous cross-species virus hops occurred point to this being a relatively common occurence (1918 avian-porcine-human connection occurred in Kansas by the way, not "Spanish")

umm sure

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/RNA_hydrolysis