Wuhan Institute of Virology
BSL4 facility, university
| Wuhan Institute of Virology link () Campfire Wiki Website | |
|---|---|
| File:2019–20 Wuhan coronavirus outbreak map.jpg The Wuhan Institute of Virology is 8.6km from the seafood market originally claimed to be the first cluster of COVID-19 cases. | |
| File:WIV logo.png | |
| Abbreviation | WIV |
| Headquarters | Wuhan, China |
| Interests | viruses, COVID-19, zoonosis, coronaviruses, Pandemic/Preparation, Biological weapon/Research |
| China's only BSL4 facility, which carries out "gain-of-function" research, including creation of transgenic novel coronaviruses by combining SARS with HIV. | |
The Wuhan Institute of Virology (WIV) opened mainland China's first biosafety level 4 laboratory in 2015. They carried out "gain-of-function" research on coronaviruses.[1] Researchers from WIV have published many papers about novel coronaviruses, including transgenic SARS/HIV hybrid viruses.[2][3] Zhengli Shi has headed the research.Template:Cn
Safety
"Scientists have expressed concern about China’s ability to safely monitor this BSL-4 lab in Wuhan" a former NSA counterterrorism analyst said. [4]
Research
"Since 2004, shortly after the original SARS outbreak, researchers from the WIV have been collecting bat coronaviruses in an intensive search for SARS-like pathogens."[5]
The WIV does "gain-of-function" research, which seeks to increase virulence of viruses. The lab has been supplied with viruses including Ebola, Henipah from Canada, which reportedly doesn't do such research.[1]
New coronaviruses
In 2016 researchers at the WIV reported "the isolation and characterisation of a novel bat coronavirus which is much closer to the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus (SARS-CoV) in genomic sequence than others previously reported." [6]
"Researchers from the institute have insisted there is no link between the [COVID-19] outbreak and their laboratory."[7]
Blame for Covid-19
In April 2020, the Western commercially-controlled media began blaming the Wuhan Institute of Virology for the outbreak of Covid-19, often citing anonymous "intelligence" sources.[9]
Funding
The WIV has received funds for its "gain-of-function" research from EcoHealth Alliance, whose head, Peter Daszak, has publicly defended its importance and headlined a piece for The Guardian — initially without declaring any conflict of interest — entitled Ignore the conspiracy theories: Scientists know Covid-19 wasn't created in a lab.[10]
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 https://wearechange.org/chinese-scientist-escorted-out-of-canadian-biolab-sent-deadly-viruses-to-wuhan/
- ↑ http://english.whiov.cas.cn/Research/Research_Progress/201603/t20160311_160492.html
- ↑ https://www.nature.com/articles/nature12711
- ↑ Document:Logistical and Technical Exploration into the Origins of the COVID-19 virus
- ↑ https://jonathanlatham.net/the-case-is-building-that-covid-19-had-a-lab-origin/
- ↑ http://english.whiov.cas.cn/Research/Research_Progress/201603/t20160311_160492.html
- ↑ https://www.sciencemag.org/news/2020/02/scientists-strongly-condemn-rumors-and-conspiracy-theories-about-origin-coronavirus
- ↑ https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-8233185/Shock-photos-inside-Wuhan-lab-stores-1-500-virus-strains.html
- ↑ https://bigleaguepolitics.com/new-photos-from-wuhan-lab-show-broken-seals-on-storage-for-1500-virus-strains/
- ↑ https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2020/jun/09/conspiracies-covid-19-lab-false-pandemic