by Yuhong Dong M.D, Ph.D. at The Epoch Times
We’re not afraid of the tigers in the zoo because we trust they cannot attack. But what if someone opens the cage?
Many viruses are highly lethal in nature but cannot infect humans. Fear arises when these viruses break the species barrier.
This can happen naturally or through risky research practices, particularly gain-of-function (GOF) research.
What Is GOF?
Just as all substances have functions, specific genes enable viruses to spread rapidly or cause severe diseases. GOF research involves introducing new functioning genes into a virus, enhancing its ability to infect hosts or increasing its virulence.
There are at least three main types of new functions a virus can gain:
Gain-of-function research on viruses often results in the viruses gaining new functions such as the ability to infect humans, enhanced transmissibility, or increased virulence. (Illustration by The Epoch Times, Shutterstock)
- Expanded Host Range GOF research can enable viruses to infect new species that they previously could not. This includes crossing the species barrier to infect humans, which poses significant risks for zoonotic outbreaks and potential pandemics. A 2015 Nature Medicine article provides a pertinent example. A bat-derived SARS-like coronavirus, initially noninfectious to humans, became capable of human infection after GOF studies at China’s Wuhan Institute of Virology (WIV).
- Enhanced Transmission…