Going viral

On New Year's Eve 2019, China reported a strange sickness in the city of Wuhan. Twelve days later, the first Covid-19 death was confirmed. This month, the global toll passed five million. Some estimate the pandemic has claimed 19 million lives in excess deathsThe number of fatalities above what would be expected in normal times. It includes non-Covid-19 deaths caused by disruption to the healthcare system..

But how did it start?

It's a riddle the world's top scientists struggle to solve. But the debate sheds light on scientific experiments that could unleash a new and deadlier virus.

Last week, researcher Michael Worobey claimed to have found Covid-19's patient zeroThe first documented case of a disease. A previous report identified a different patient zero with no links to the animal market.: a woman from Wuhan working at a live-food market. Worobey describes the discovery as "a big red flashing arrow" pointing to wildlife tradeAfter the outbreak, China banned the sale of bushmeat. At the so-called wet market, infected pangolins or palm civets may have transmitted the virus from bats to humans. as the "most likely" cause of the pandemic.

But another idea is gaining ground. Did the virus escape from the Wuhan Institute of Virology? Scientists have called it a "conspiracy theoryAn explanation for a phenomenon that centres around the actions of sinister, shadowy groups, where an absence of evidence can be interpreted as evidence of its truth. ", but a US spy agency says it is "plausible". Now, new evidence suggests a possible link between Covid-19 and the Wuhan lab.

Shi Zhengli is known as Batwoman for her research on coronavirus in horseshoe bats. In 2012, she collected a sample that killed three miners working in a cave in Yunnan province. It shares 96.1% of Covid-19's DNADeoxyribonucleic acid is the material in an organism that carries genetic information..

Now, a band of online detectives calling themselves Drastic have dug up a 2018 document by a US research group called EcoHealth AllianceThe non-governmental US research group is run by the British scientist Peter Daszak and has worked with Wuhan Institute of Virology for many years.. The virologists planned to edit these bat viruses, making them more infectious to humans.

Why would scientists want to do this?

The technique is called gain-of-functionThis technique is also used to modify larger organisms. For example, to make drought-resistant crops or mosquitoes resistant to transmitting infectious diseases.. Supporters say it prepares humanity to fight future pandemics. Others fear it may cause one.

Microbiologist Simon Wain-Hobson explains scientists can now "cut and paste" DNA in a test tube, "just like writing an email." Gain-of-function adds a new ability, creating a more powerful chimericAny organism with DNA from two or more separate species. The name comes from the monster in Greek mythology, part lion, goat and snake. virus.

For example, H5N1 is a deadly strain of avian flu that kills 60% of all humans infected. Fortunately, it is difficult to catch. But in 2011, researchers at the University of Wisconsin-Madison combined H5N1 with seasonal flu so that it transmits easily in airborne water droplets.

Chemical biologist Richard Ebright says it's "the most dangerous scientific field in the world". The risks are enormous, but US Chief Medical Advisor Anthony FauciThe scientist in charge of the US response to the pandemic. He denies that US money given to the Wuhan lab was used for gain-of-function research. says it is a necessary "tool" for understanding how a virus works. It could predict natural mutations and help pre-emptively develop vaccines for future pandemics.

Except, this is "Mission Impossible", says Professor Wain-Hobson. "Our track record in pandemic prediction is zero." And gain-of-function research has so far produced no vaccines.

But a report by the Financial Times shows the US spent $30m over 15 years on gain-of-function research. And gave $600,000 to the Wuhan lab via EcoHealth.

Wain-Hobson says a lab accident would have "incalculable consequences" for humanity. He is calling for an international treaty banning gain-of-function research. "It is no exaggeration to say the safety of the world is at stake."

Should gain-of-function research be banned?

Some say no, this research is too critical to ban. Gene splicing is a vast field of science with enormous potential. Mother Nature has not banned gain-of-function, cooking up deadly virus variants without our help. We need this tool to stay ahead of naturally occurring mutations.

Some say yes, it is not worth the risk. Accidents happen. In 2013, a researcher at the Wisconsin lab accidentally pricked their finger with an enhanced deadly flu virus. In Wuhan, virologists handled biohazards without wearing masks. And there is also the risk someone will use this research to cause deliberate harm.