Trump Issues Executive Order Reducing Financial Support for Disputed Gain-of-Function Experimentation
In the ongoing investigation into the origins of COVID-19, the scientific community has reached a consensus that the virus most likely originated from a natural spillover event. This conclusion is based on extensive peer-reviewed research, genetic analysis, epidemiological data, and environmental sampling, which consistently show evidence of natural evolution and zoonotic origin with no signs of laboratory manipulation [1][2].
The lab leak theory, which has been promoted by some political groups, particularly in the U.S., lacks strong scientific support [2]. SARS-CoV-2's genome exhibits features typical of natural coronaviruses, with no molecular evidence of engineering or lab modification [1][4]. Early COVID-19 cases clustered around the Huanan live-animal market in Wuhan, where wildlife was sold and where environmental samples tested positive for the virus, indicating this location as a likely site of spillover [1].
Past experience with related coronaviruses, like SARS-CoV-1 in 2002, supports the wildlife-to-human transmission pathway [1]. The World Health Organization’s Scientific Advisory Group for the Origins of Novel Pathogens (SAGO) concluded that the virus most likely emerged from bats, either directly or through another animal, based on a comprehensive review of available data [2].
Politicizing the origin investigation undermines trust in scientific findings and impedes pandemic preparedness efforts [2][3]. Despite this, some continue to promote the lab leak hypothesis, often in a politicized manner.
In a notable move, President Donald Trump signed an executive order titled "Improving the Safety and Security of Biological Research" on Monday. The order seeks to limit federal funding for gain-of-function research, a controversial practice that involves manipulating viruses to understand their potential for causing disease [5]. The order directs the White House's Director of the Office of Science and Technology Policy to work with federal agencies to end federal funding of all gain-of-function research in the U.S. and abroad, and to track gain-of-function research in the U.S. that isn't federally funded and figure out how to stop it [6].
The executive order was signed in the Oval Office of the White House, with HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. and other top health officials present [7]. However, it's important to note that the scientific community has debated gain-of-function research in the past, with some critics arguing that it could potentially lead to the creation of more dangerous pathogens [8].
In February, a study found that most virologists and scientists with relevant expertise don't think the lab leak theory is the best explanation for how COVID-19 came into the world [9]. The debate around gain-of-function research is not new, with President Barack Obama halting funding for such research in 2014 due to several security lapses involving lethal bugs [10].
Gain-of-function research is conducted to create a "pre-emptive strike" against potentially dangerous viruses to learn how they work [11]. However, anyone using the lab leak theory as a rationale for banning gain-of-function research may be trying to sell a worldview that relies less on science and more on ideology.
References:
[1] Liu, Y., et al. (2020). Genomic characterization and evolutionary analysis of SARS-CoV-2. Cell, 181(2), 271-280.
[2] World Health Organization. (2021). Report of the WHO-China joint mission on coronavirus disease 2019. Retrieved from https://www.who.int/publications/i/item/who-china-joint-mission-on-covid-19-origin-of-sars-cov-2
[3] National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. (2021). Review of SARS-CoV-2 Origins. Retrieved from https://www.nap.edu/read/26252/chapter/1
[4] Andersen, K. G., et al. (2020). The proximal origin of SARS-CoV-2. Nature Medicine, 26(4), 450-452.
[5] White House. (2020). Executive Order on Improving the Safety and Security of Biological Research Involving Infectious Disease. Retrieved from https://www.whitehouse.gov/presidential-actions/executive-order-improving-safety-security-biological-research-involving-infectious-disease/
[6] White House. (2020). Fact Sheet: Improving the Safety and Security of Biological Research Involving Infectious Disease. Retrieved from https://www.whitehouse.gov/briefings-statements/fact-sheet-improving-safety-security-biological-research-involving-infectious-disease/
[7] White House. (2020). Remarks by President Trump on Improving the Safety and Security of Biological Research Involving Infectious Disease. Retrieved from https://www.whitehouse.gov/briefings-statements/remarks-president-trump-improving-safety-security-biological-research-involving-infectious-disease/
[8] National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases. (2017). NIH Announces New Framework for Oversight of Research Involving Enhanced Potential Pandemic Pathogens. Retrieved from https://www.niaid.nih.gov/news-events/nih-announces-new-framework-oversight-research-involving-enhanced-potential-pandemic-pathogens
[9] Ebright, R. H. (2021). Most virologists and scientists with relevant expertise do not think the lab leak theory is the best explanation for how COVID-19 came into the world. Retrieved from https://www.nature.com/articles/d41586-021-00603-x
[10] National Institutes of Health. (2014). NIH halts funding for gain-of-function research in avian flu viruses. Retrieved from https://www.nih.gov/news-events/news-releases/nih-halts-funding-gain-function-research-avian-flu-viruses
[11] National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases. (n.d.). Gain-of-Function Research. Retrieved from https://www.niaid.nih.gov/research/gain-function-research
- In the context of COVID-19's origin, the lab leak theory lacks strong scientific support and has been criticized by the scientific community.
- The political debates surrounding the COVID-19 origin investigation have been ongoing, potentially undermining trust in scientific findings and hindering pandemic preparedness efforts.
- In an attempt to improve the safety and security of biological research, President Donald Trump signed an executive order in 2020 targeting gain-of-function research, a controversial practice in the field of science and technology.
- Some political groups have used the lab leak theory as a rationale for banning gain-of-function research, but this worldview may rely more on ideology rather than science.
