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News Articles: Wuhan Institute of Virology

Security personnel stand guard outside the Wuhan Institute of Virology during the Feb. 3 visit of the World Health Organization team investigating the origins of the SARS-CoV-2, the virus that triggered a pandemic.

The Investigation Of The Pandemic's Origins Is At An Impasse

In the wake of heated debate over the unproven lab leak theory, the world is calling on China to cooperate with investigations. But efforts to delve into this matter seem to be stalling.

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By:
  • Will Stone
President Biden directed the intelligence agencies to look for evidence of an accident at the Wuhan Institute of Virology (pictured). Many scientists still think its more likely the virus came form the wild.

Many Scientists Still Think The Coronavirus Came From Nature

President Biden told U.S. intelligence agencies to investigate whether the coronavirus spread after a lab leak in China. Scientists welcome the request, but many still think it came from the wild.

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By:
  • Geoff Brumfiel
A laboratory on the campus of the Wuhan Institute of Virology in Wuhan in China's central Hubei province in May 2020. Focus has turned back to the facility as a possible origin of the coronavirus pandemic.

Why The U.S. Thinks A Lab In Wuhan Needs A Closer Look As A Possible Pandemic Source

With the focus shifting again to a Wuhan, China, lab, Dr. Céline Gounder, a COVID-19 adviser to the Biden transition team, says it's important to find the pandemic's origins to prevent the next one.

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By:
  • Avie Schneider
Members of the World Health Organization team investigating the origins of the coronavirus leave the Wuhan Institute of Virology in Wuhan, China, on Feb. 3.

Theory That COVID Came From A Chinese Lab Takes On New Life In Wake Of WHO Report

Some scientists worry the possibility the coronavirus escaped from research facilities hasn't gotten enough scrutiny. Others say it appears far more likely to have emerged naturally.

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By:
  • John Ruwitch
This Bornean horseshoe bat and other bat species can harbor coronaviruses. The nonprofit group EcoHealth Alliance had its NIH research money cut for a project in China on bats and coronaviruses this spring — but just got a new multimillion dollar grant from the agency.

Group Whose NIH Grant For Virus Research Was Revoked Just Got A New Grant

EcoHealth Alliance is one of 11 recipients of funds to set up the Centers for Research in Emerging Infectious Diseases. But the grant won't let them revisit earlier research on bats and coronavirus.

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By:
  • Maria Godoy