(The Conversation is an independent and nonprofit source of news, analysis and commentary from academic experts.) The term “gain of function” is often taken to refer to research with viruses that puts ...

Trump signed an executive order banning federal funds for ‘gain of function’ research abroad The research alters viruses to increase transmissibility or severity in the name of preparedness Scientists ...

Gain-of-function experiments can help researchers get ahead of viruses naturally gaining the ability to infect people in the wild. But they're also used for many other areas of study within biology.

Gain-of-function research became especially controversial and politically polarized during the COVID-19 pandemic. One theory states the SARS-CoV-2 virus spilled out of a Chinese laboratory in Wuhan, ...

Disease X is an unknown pathogen capable of causing a devastating pandemic. This term was coined by the World Health Organization in 2018 and was under discussion at the World Economic Forum in Davos, ...