Dr. Anthony Fauci testified before Congress in January and said that in his previous testimony he chose to use the Department of Health and Human Services’ (HHS) definition of gain of function research, which was in direct conflict with the definition of gain of function research at the agency he previously led.
Fauci, who was the former director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID), Claimed When he told Republican Kentucky Sen. Rand Paul in 2021 that NIAID “categorically does not fund gain-of-function research conducted at the Wuhan Institute of Virology,” he testified that he was using the HHS definition of gain-of-function research through the P3CO framework. However, NIAID defines gain-of-function research as “any attribute that can be reasonably assumed to confer on influenza, MERS, or SARS viruses that enhances the pathogenicity and/or mammalian infectivity of the resulting virus.” according to The letter, sent by NIAID in 2016, was obtained by the U.S. Right to Know group through a Freedom of Information Act request.
COVID-19 is a SARS virus, according to To the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. (Related: Nonprofit linked to COVID-19 lab leak claims loses government funding)
Research from the Wuhan Institute of Virology, funded through a National Institutes of Health (NIH) grant to the EcoHealth Alliance, has modified a bat coronavirus to make it more infectious.
The transcript of Fauci’s interview with the committee has been released. 🚨
Fauci attempted to define “gain-of-function research” as something that does not exist, but according to the letter we received, his description of gain-of-function research here is not consistent with NIAID’s internal policy under his leadership. https://t.co/sKqEGPTQhn pic.twitter.com/VzQtQrAbk1
— Emily Kopp (@emilyakopp) May 31, 2024
Fauci disagreed with NIAID, telling Congress, “When I’m asked if something is a gain of function, I’m referring to the actual definition of gain of function according to the P3CO framework.”
“That’s the operational definition when we’re deciding whether to award a grant,” he continued. But an NIH spokesperson previously told DCNF that P3CO wasn’t used to vet the grant to EcoHealth, which ultimately funded the bat coronavirus research in Wuhan.
H.H.S. Definition of P3CO It includes any pathogen that is highly contagious, potentially harmful to humans, and that has been modified to increase its infectivity or virulence. The definition does not include “naturally occurring pathogens circulating in or recovered from nature, regardless of pandemic potential.”
Although Fauci has denied that federal funds were used for gain-of-function research in Wuhan, NIH Principal Deputy Director Lawrence Tabak reported to Congress on May 16 that the government had in fact funded such research.
“It depends on how you define gain-of-function research,” Tabak said in response to a question about federal funding of the WIV’s gain-of-function research. “If you’re talking about the general term, then yes.”
When pressed by Congress in January, Fauci refused to say whether he agreed or disagreed with Tabak’s opinion.
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