'''Gain of function''' ('''GoF''') research is when scientists in a laboratory purposefully cause mutations that give viruses new abilities, such as transmissibility from animals to humans.
==SARS-CoV-2==
The SARS-CoV-2 virus did not occur in nature. Its [[genome]] was "inconsistent with evolutionary theory." On January 9, 2017, the [[Obama]] White House Office of Science and Technology Policy restored funding for gain-of-fucntion research to the [[Wuhan Institute of Virology]] for research on the bat [[coronavirus]] to make the virus transmissible to humans.<ref>https://obamawhitehouse.archives.gov/blog/2017/01/09/recommended-policy-guidance-potential-pandemic-pathogen-care-and-oversight</ref><ref>https://www.phe.gov/s3/dualuse/documents/p3co-finalguidancestatement.pdf</ref> The funds were administered by Dr. [[Anthony Fauci]], the chief medical advisor to the [[president]]. Fauci extended the funds,<ref>https://thefederalist.com/2021/02/17/infamous-wuhan-lab-authorized-to-receive-us-taxpayer-funding-nih-confirms/</ref> but did no gain approval from a mandatory review board as required first.<ref>https://www.nationalreview.com/news/hhs-board-never-approved-wuhan-institute-of-virology-research-grant/</ref>
==References==
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