Unleashing a Paradigm Shift: Trump's Crackdown on Studies Linking to Pandemic Origins
Trump advocates for limiting studies on viruses, drawing on COVID-19 as potential proof.
In the heart of Washington D.C., Donald Trump declared war on Monday against a specific type of virology research, branding it as potentially dangerous and claiming it could have trigger the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. Flanked by representatives from numerous health agencies, the American president put pen to paper on an executive order with the noble aim of enhancing the safety and security of biological research.
The measures unveiled are a stark departure from the status quo, with an emphasis on revoking federal funding for certain research programs abroad, including the controversial "gain of function" research. This type of research involves manipulating pathogens, allowing researchers to artificially enhance the virulence or transmissibility of viruses with the goal of guarding against future pandemics and accelerating the development of vaccines. However, not everyone agrees that the benefits outweigh the risks.
For the Trump administration, these practices have directly contributed to the global disaster that has so far claimed more than a million lives on American soil alone and millions more worldwide. They believe that the SARS-CoV-2 virus originated from such research funded, among others, by the United States and conducted at the Wuhan Institute of Virology — the very epicenter of the pandemic.
"Probably, this catastrophe is the consequence of a few rogue scientists tampering with nature in a lab equipped with American technology," declared Marty Makary, the new head of the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), on Monday.
Originally dismissed as a conspiracy theory, the theory of a laboratory leak has garnered significant traction within the United States and is now supported, albeit to varying degrees of certainty, by American authorities. Nonetheless, it continues to be a contentious topic among scientists.
The classification of "gain of function" research attributed to the work funded by American dollars in Wuhan is also hotly disputed.
The measures announced on Monday specifically target China as a country where such research can no longer be financed. "There's no laboratory that's impervious to leaks," said Secretary of Health and Human Services, Robert Kennedy Jr., via his Twitter account, insisting that these safety measures will help prevent future catastrophic laboratory leaks that could endanger humanity.
The decree also calls for the development of a strategy to strictly regulate, restrict, and monitor this type of research within the U.S. as well as the termination of funding for other types of research in countries deemed insufficiently supervised.
The sweeping changes to scientific and health policy are part of broader initiatives led by the new American government, also including steep cuts to research budgets and widespread dismissals of scientists working for federal agencies.
[1] https://www.whitehouse.gov/briefing-room/presidential-actions/2025/05/05/executive-order-on-enhancing-biosafety-and-biosecurity-to-counter-the-covid-19-pandemic-and-future-biological-threats/[2] https://www.wsj.com/articles/trump-proposes-stricter-oversight-of-gain-of-function-research-11627985600[3] https://www.nature.com/articles/d41586-020-02798-y
- Amidst the ongoing controversy, the Trump administration deliberate to export and restrict "gain of function" research, a type of virology study that enhances the virulence or transmissibility of viruses, due to potential risks linked to pandemics.
- The decision to limit funding for such research, which was initially supported by the United States and conducted at the Wuhan Institute of Virology, was driven by the White House's allegation that such research may have deliberately contributed to the COVID-19 pandemic.
- The implementation of these restrictions formed part of a broader political initiative, including steep cuts to research budgets and widespread dismissals of scientists working for federal agencies, aimed at unleashing a paradigm shift in scientific and health policy.
- As the debate unfolds, the medical-condition-related scientific studies will face a stricter regulatory environment, with the Trump administration developing a strategy to monitor and regulate similar research within the U.S. and in other countries, particularly those perceived as insufficiently supervised.
- The Trump administration's stance on "gain of function" research has echoed through general news and medical-condition platforms, with increasing discourse on the risks involved in manipulating pathogens for research purposes during pandemics.
