Discover and read the best of Twitter Threads about #PathogensProject
Most recents (2)
1. I woke up today to BBC world news mentioning George Gao on the radio:
"“The possibility Covid virus leaked from a lab should not be ruled out"
"You can always suspect anything. That's science. Don't rule out anything"
I almost choked on my toast!
bbc.com/news/world-asi…
"“The possibility Covid virus leaked from a lab should not be ruled out"
"You can always suspect anything. That's science. Don't rule out anything"
I almost choked on my toast!
bbc.com/news/world-asi…
2. "Risky"
On the surface, Prof Gao's comments about not ruling out a lab leak appear seriously at odds with China's publicly stated position. Risky even.
"We really don't know where the virus came from… the question is still open," Prof Gao told the BBC
On the surface, Prof Gao's comments about not ruling out a lab leak appear seriously at odds with China's publicly stated position. Risky even.
"We really don't know where the virus came from… the question is still open," Prof Gao told the BBC
3. "Proximal Origin of Sars-Cov-2"
Lipkin (one of the authors) said he now doubts the strength of that earlier conclusion & ruling out any lab-based scenario was putting it too strongly.
"He volunteers a theory of his own, pointing to another Wuhan laboratory - run by the WCDC"
Lipkin (one of the authors) said he now doubts the strength of that earlier conclusion & ruling out any lab-based scenario was putting it too strongly.
"He volunteers a theory of his own, pointing to another Wuhan laboratory - run by the WCDC"
1. Something I haven’t seen much discussion of at #PathogensProject is about surrogate experimental systems for dangerous pathogens.
2. Predominantly from the retrovirus field, the establishment of lentiviral pseudotype systems (PLVs) for studying enveloped viral glycoproteins, as well as replication competent Rhabdovirus-based systems are cheap, easy and fast.
3. While there are limitations on some of the cell biology they can tell you about the dangerous virus of choice, they can give you most of the info you need to know including receptor, host range tropism, sensitivity to antibodies, vaccine escape etc.
