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THREAD. It& #39;s beginning to look likely, even probable, that we owe the pandemic of COVID-19 to lax biocontainment of bat viruses at Wuhan Institute of Virology (WIV).
I do not say this lightly. It is a very horrific error if so...
I do not say this lightly. It is a very horrific error if so...
WIV was China& #39;s entry into the world of highest biosafety level of containment, the "Ebola" level, BSL4.
But international observers noted serious issues there that called WIV& #39;s BSL4 status into serious question...
But international observers noted serious issues there that called WIV& #39;s BSL4 status into serious question...
Our State Department relayed cables back home expressing grave concerns about WIV& #39;s staffing, given deadly seriousness of bugs they were propagating. Staff appeared woefully unqualified for high-level containment work... https://www.google.com/amp/s/www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/2020/04/14/state-department-cables-warned-safety-issues-wuhan-lab-studying-bat-coronaviruses/%3foutputType=amp">https://www.google.com/amp/s/www...
For several years, WIV had been publishing hits from a gold mine they had uncovered: a population of wild horseshoe bats that was rich with coronaviruses that, for the first time, were clearly capable of including SARS CoV, the "original" SARS of 2002-3...
The viruses were unmistakably SARS, with the added twist that bats were spreading a terrifyingly diverse array of SARS-like agents that undoubtedly included many potential novel human pathogens.... https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5708621/">https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/artic...
The paper above shows "sequence elements", or motifs that had been heretofore unique to SARS-CoV-1 proper, many of them, that appeared only in this particular group of 1 genus of bat, Rhinolophus, that WIV had uncovered...
Scientific and diplomatic visitors to WIV, upon reviewing its practices and research findings, specifically warned that WIV could accidentally release a SARS-like nCoV with pandemic potential YEARS before we saw COVID. (op cit, WaPo)
I KNOW!...
I KNOW!...
So. This situation exploits a weakness in virology. Everyone agrees that SARS is bad and should be subject to rather high levels of containment. But what of a bat virus, 90% identical to SARS, or whatever, that hasn& #39;t made anyone sick?
We don& #39;t know where to draw the line...
We don& #39;t know where to draw the line...
China has suddenly decided that government must review all efforts to identify the origin of SARS-CoV-2. Normally they& #39;d want to know its origin as well.
But China is not prepared to really contain its labs pathogens.
Released SARS at least TWICE.
Insane. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC416634/">https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/artic...
But China is not prepared to really contain its labs pathogens.
Released SARS at least TWICE.
Insane. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC416634/">https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/artic...
Far be it for a virologist, even retired, to try to condemn other virologists for what appears to be a catastrophic error that will kill millions.
But I refuse to be stupid, or cover it up.
I am all but convinced that COVID-19 is the product of a lab accident.
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But I refuse to be stupid, or cover it up.
I am all but convinced that COVID-19 is the product of a lab accident.
END
