{"id":2019688,"date":"2023-09-01T17:45:05","date_gmt":"2023-09-01T21:45:05","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/house-gop-investigates-university-of-wisconsin-for-gain-of-function-research-2\/"},"modified":"2023-09-01T17:48:52","modified_gmt":"2023-09-01T21:48:52","slug":"house-gop-investigates-university-of-wisconsin-for-gain-of-function-research-2","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/house-gop-investigates-university-of-wisconsin-for-gain-of-function-research-2\/","title":{"rendered":"House GOP probes University of Wisconsin for &#8216;gain of function&#8217; study."},"content":{"rendered":"<aside class=\"mashsb-container mashsb-main mashsb-stretched\"><div class=\"mashsb-box\"><div class=\"mashsb-count mash-medium\" style=\"&quot;\"><div class=\"counts mashsbcount\">22<\/div><span class=\"mashsb-sharetext\">SHARES<\/span><\/div><div class=\"mashsb-buttons\"><a class=\"mashicon-facebook mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/sharer.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.conservativenewsdaily.net%2Fbreaking-news%2Fhouse-gop-investigates-university-of-wisconsin-for-gain-of-function-research-2%2F\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Facebook<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-twitter mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/intent\/tweet?text=&amp;url=https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/?p=2019688&amp;via=ConservNewsDly\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Twitter<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-subscribe mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"#\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Subscribe<\/span><\/a><div class=\"onoffswitch2 mash-medium mashsb-noshadow\" style=\"display:none\"><\/div><\/div>\n            <\/div>\n                <div style=\"clear:both\"><\/div><\/aside>\n            <!-- Share buttons by mashshare.net - Version: 4.0.47--><h2>Investigation Launched into Potentially Dangerous Virus Research at University of Wisconsin, Madison<\/h2>\n<p>Rep. Brad \u200bWenstrup (R-OH) has\u2064 brought a conflict at the state level into the \u200bnational spotlight by\u2062 launching an \u200cinvestigation into the University \u2063of Wisconsin, Madison&#8217;s research on viruses with pandemic-causing potential. This investigation has raised concerns about the safety of gain-of-function research, which involves manipulating existing viruses to acquire\u2064 new qualities.<\/p>\n<h3>State \u2064Legislators \u2064Introduce Bill\u2063 to Regulate \u200cResearch<\/h3>\n<p>In August, three\u200c Republican\u2063 state legislators in\u200d Wisconsin introduced a bill that \u200caimed to prevent universities and colleges from\u200d conducting gain-of-function research. The bill also proposed that <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/house-gop-investigates-university-of-wisconsin-for-gain-of-function-research\/\" title=\"House GOP probes University of Wisconsin for 'gain of function' study.\">researchers submit safety reports<\/a> to the state Department of Health Services prior to beginning research on <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/completely-incorrect-fauci-denies-funding-gain-of-function-research-at-wuhan-lab-in-tense-exchange-with-rand-paul\/\" title=\"\u2018Completely Incorrect\u2019: Fauci Denies Funding Gain Of Function Research At Wuhan Lab In Tense Exchange With Rand Paul\">potential pandemic pathogens<\/a>.<\/p>\n<h3>Letter to University Chancellor<\/h3>\n<p>As chairman of the House Select Subcommittee on\u200c the Coronavirus Pandemic, Rep. \u200dWenstrup sent a letter to the university chancellor, Jennifer Mnookin, expressing concerns about the university&#8217;s opposition to the proposed law. He highlighted \u2064several safety violations in the institution&#8217;s handling\u2064 of research on potential pandemic pathogens since 2011.<\/p>\n<blockquote>\n<p>&#8220;UW has already shown it has the capabilities to modify pathogens and \u200bmake \u200bthem\u2063 more dangerous,&#8221; Wenstrup wrote. He cited an incident in\u200b 2011\u2062 where a researcher modified the avian H5N1 influenza virus to spread between ferrets, which\u2062 <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/house-gop-investigates-university-of-wisconsin-for-gain-of-function-research-2\/\" title=\"House GOP probes University of Wisconsin for 'gain of function' study.\">closely \u2064resemble human response<\/a> to the flu. The H5N1 virus is a potential pandemic \u2062pathogen that, through modification\u200c or mishandling, could cause another \u200bglobal pandemic.&#8221;<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p>Rep. Wenstrup \u2062also \u2064mentioned an incident in 2013 where\u200b a researcher was accidentally infected with the H5N1 virus due to unauthorized use of a needle. Despite the university&#8217;s assurance of a designated\u2063 quarantine apartment, the infected researcher had to quarantine at home while their family stayed in a hotel.<\/p>\n<h3>University&#8217;s \u2062Response<\/h3>\n<p>UW spokeswoman Kelly Tyrrell emphasized\u200c that the university has multiple layers of oversight for research on potential pandemic\u200d pathogens. She stated that the ability to \u2063study harmful viruses and pathogens safely is \u200dcrucial for public health and food \u200bsupply protection. However, Tyrrell did not respond to the Washington Examiner&#8217;s request for\u2064 comment.<\/p>\n<h3>Controversy \u200cSurrounding\u2064 Gain-of-Function Research<\/h3>\n<p>The controversy surrounding gain-of-function and research on potential pandemic pathogens is partly \u200ddue to \u2064their\u200c potential connection \u2063to the origins of SARS-CoV-2, the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/most-infectious-coronavirus-yet-skirts-past-antibodies\/\" title=\"Most Infectious Coronavirus Yet, Skirts Past Antibodies\">virus responsible<\/a> for COVID-19. Some speculate that SARS-CoV-2 originated from the Wuhan Institute of Virology in China, which has been criticized for\u2064 its poor \u200csafety\u2064 standards.<\/p>\n<p>Tom Still from the Wisconsin Technology Council opposed the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/virginia-and-california-democrats-push-back-against-gas-tax-relief\/\" title=\"Virginia and California Democrats Push Back Against Gas Tax Relief\">proposed state legislation<\/a>, stating that while there are risks associated with gain-of-function experiments, it is important not to hinder important research or disadvantage Wisconsin scientists.<\/p>\n<h3>Request for Documents and \u2064Communications<\/h3>\n<p>In his letter to\u2063 Chancellor Mnookin, Rep. Wenstrup requested all documents and\u200c communications related to the university&#8217;s research on potential pandemic pathogens and Dual Use Research of Concern. These documents are expected to be provided to the subcommittee by September 15. Specifically, Wenstrup requested communications between university researchers, the National Institutes of Health, \u2062the Centers for \u2062Disease Control and Prevention, \u200dand EcoHealth Alliance, an organization that funds gain-of-function research.<\/p>\n<p>The Democrats on the subcommittee\u2063 declined \u200dto comment on the investigation when \u2064approached by the Washington Examiner.<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/\">Click here<\/a> to read more from the Washington\u2063 Examiner.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Rep. Brad Wenstrup (R-OH) initiated a probe into the University of Wisconsin, Madison&#8217;s risky virus research, elevating a state-level dispute to national attention. In August, three Wisconsin Republican lawmakers proposed a bill to prohibit gain-of-function experiments in universities and colleges.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":2019689,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_mo_disable_npp":"","fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/cndimages.nyc3.digitaloceanspaces.com\/breaking-news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/01\/IMG_2758-scaled-1.jpg","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[538],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-2019688","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-washington-examiner"],"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/cndimages.nyc3.digitaloceanspaces.com\/breaking-news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/01\/IMG_2758-scaled-1.jpg","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2019688","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2019688"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2019688\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2019689"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2019688"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2019688"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2019688"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}