Risky London virus research

British experiments

Risked making the Covid pandemic ‘more lethal’

In testing, Imperial College London

Experiments took place in London

Supported by the UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA)

Cells were infected with delta and omicron,

at the same time,

to see which had a competitive advantage.

Professor Anton van der Merwe, molecular immunology, University of Oxford

Risked combining the two variants,

to produce something “more lethal”

Infected scientists, could walk out of the lab.

“Coronaviruses like Sars-CoV-2 are well known to ‘evolve’ by exchanging genetic material,

when two distinct viruses infect the same cell,”

This makes it much more likely that these two strains will recombine,

and create a more dangerous variant,

which could infect those doing the experiments,

who could then spread it into the community.”

Using delta and omicron, particularly risky,

from different lineages, with significant differences

Professor Anton van der Merwe,

There is more opportunity for recombination in animal experiments and selection for more dangerous variants because they involve more cells infected for longer periods,

Handling animals is also riskier in terms of transmission to the experimenter than handling cells.

Neither of these experiments are of any help in protecting us from Sars-CoV-2.

Dr Filippa Lentzos, Centre for Science and Security Studies King’s College London

“There has been a global boom in construction of labs handling dangerous pathogens, but this has not been accompanied by sufficient biosafety and biosecurity oversight.”

Imperial College London

“This government-backed research used viruses no more pathogenic than those already circulating within the population and will provide crucial insights that support government decision-making on how to manage the pandemic.

“It was conducted in a biosafety level three laboratory in line with strict government regulations, and received ongoing approval from the Health and Safety Executive.”

Wuhan IV, biosafety level 4 (BSL4)

One of 59 around the world

Three quarters in urban settings (like London)

Past lab leaks

Smallpox, swine flu, SARS, anthrax, foot and mouth disease

Report by King’s College London

Did the coronavirus SARS-CoV-2 result from high-risk research gone wrong?

The risk of future pandemics originating from research with dangerous pathogens is real.

BSL4 labs

Europe, 25 labs

North America, 14 and

Asia, 13

Australia, 4

Africa,3

With 3,000m² of lab space, the Wuhan Institute of Virology is the largest BSL4 lab in the world