Tag Archives: Gain of Function

Did China Just Develop 100% Lethal COVID Virus?!

Did scientists in China just develop a new COVID virus that is 100% lethal to “humanised” mice?!

Take a look at the viral claims, and find out what the facts really are!

Claim : China Just Developed 100% Lethal COVID Virus!

People are sharing articles with alarming headlines that claim or suggest that scientists in China just developed a new COVID virus that is 100% lethal to “humanised” mice!

China Develops New Covid Strain With 100% Mortality In Humanised Mice

Chinese lab crafts mutant COVID-19 strain with 100% kill rate in ‘humanized’ mice

Chinese scientists ‘create’ a mutant coronavirus strain that attacks the BRAIN and has a 100% kill rate in mice

China continues experiments with ‘lethal’ COVID strain

China toys with deadly new COVID strain: When will the madness end?

As such, some people are claiming on social media that Chinese scientists were creating bioweapons or Disease X through Gain-of-Function experiments:

DiedSuddenly : New study shows that a new lab created disease out of China (Disease X) has a 100% fatality rate in humanized mice by infecting the nervous system.

Camus : New lab created disease out of China (Disease X) has a 100% fatality rate in humanized mice by infecting the nervous system.

Concerned Citizen :🚨🇨🇳 China Produced Lab Virus

This is truly terrifying. Dr John Campbell details trials on mice give Human Ace Receptor Genes – 100% of which died when infected with a new Gain of Function Pathogen.

Could this be Disease X? The world is going truly insane & we are Governed by Globalist Lunatics.

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Truth : China Did Not Develop New COVID Virus!

Let’s take a look at the study, and find out why scientists in China did not actually developed a new lethal COVID strain!

Fact #1 : Chinese Study Has Not Been Peer-Reviewed

First, I should also point out that the Chinese study, which was conducted by Lai Wei et. al. has not been peer-reviewed – the first step or many in the scientific review process.

Hence, it has not been published in a journal, but in bioRxiv – a preprint server operated by the Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory (CSHL). You can read the paper in full here.

While that does not mean its findings are wrong, such preprint papers should “not be considered for clinical application, nor relied upon for news reporting as established information“, as per CSHL.

Fact #2 : COVID-19 Means Coronavirus Disease 2019

I should also point out that COVID-19 is short for Coronavirus Disease 2019, and it refers to the disease, not the virus. COVID-19 is not the name of the virus, which is called SARS-CoV-2.

Even though there are many diseases caused by coronaviruses, there is only one disease named under this convention, which is COVID-19, and it is caused by the SARS-CoV-2 virus. So it would be wrong to refer to other coronaviruses, or the diseases that they cause, as COVID.

Fact #3 : Chinese Study Was Done On GX_P2V Virus

The Chinese study did not perform any research on the COVID-19 coronavirus called SARS-CoV-2. Instead, it was conducted on a mutated variant of GX_P2V, which is a pangolin coronavirus.

As they had never studied this GX_P2V mutant variant, the Chinese scientists decided to clone and test its pathogenicity in hACE2 mice.

Fact #4 : The GX_P2V Virus Mutated In Cell Culture

Right at the beginning, the study authors pointed out that they did not “create” the GX_P2V virus. Instead, it spontaneously mutated when the original GX/2017 virus was cultured in 2017.

A coronavirus related to SARS-CoV-2 was identified prior to the COVID-19 pandemic in 2017. Hence, it was called GX/2017.
The virus was cultured in 2017, and the isolate was called GX_P2V.
The GX_P2V virus isolate was found to infect both golden hamsters and hACE2 mice (transgenic mice that express the human ACE2 receptor), although it did not appear to cause disease.
It was later discovered that the virus mutated while it was cultured into a mutant that had 104 nucleotides deleted at the 3′-UTR site. This mutated variant was named as GX_P2V(short_3UTR).

From what was written in the paper, the Chinese scientists were not conducting Gain-of-Function (GoF) experiments. The GX_P2V coronavirus mutated on its own while being cultured.

The scientists even pointed out in their paper that coronaviruses have a “propensity” to “undergo rapid adaptive mutation in cell culture”. They were merely testing this mutant that was discovered earlier, but they did not test before.

Fact #5 : Type Of hACE2 Mice Used May Affect Results

hACE2 mice are transgenic mice that were developed to express the human ACE2 (Angiotensin-converting enzyme 2) receptor. Multiple hACE2 mice models have been created (example), expressing the human ACE2 in different tissues.

The Lai Wei et. al. study used the hACE2 mouse model from Beijing SpePharm Biotechnology Company, which was created using the random integration technology.

As the authors noted, the company has not published any papers on its mouse model, but their results suggest that the human ACE2 may be “highly expressed” in the brain of this particular hACE2 mouse model. If so, that could explain why the infection caused death through brain infection.

The authors also noted that these hACE2 mice had “abnormal physiology”, with “relatively reduced serum triglyceride, cholesterol, and lipase levels”.

Fact #6 : An Earlier Study Contradicted Their Findings

The study authors pointed out that their report was the “first” to show that a pangolin coronavirus can cause 100% mortality in hACE2 mice. They also pointed out that their results were “inconsistent” with that of the earlier Zhengli Shi et. al. study.

The Zhengli Shi et. al. study (source), which tested the GX_P2V(short_3UTR) mutant variant, found that it caused lung infections without severe disease in two different hACE2 mouse models.

Our findings are evidently inconsistent with those of Zhengli Shi et al. (5), who tested the virulence of GX_P2V in two different hACE2 mouse models.

The authors cautioned that there may be differences between their GX_P2V(short_3UTR) mutant variants as they may have mutated further during their respective laboratory cultures.

Again, this does not mean that both teams were conducting Gain-of-Function (GoF) modification of the pangolin coronaviruses. They were testing a variant of the GX_P2V pangolin coronavirus that spontaneously mutated through cell culture adaptation.

But these contradictory findings of the GX_P2V(short_3UTR) mutant means there is more work to be done. For certain, the Lai Wei et. al. study would need to be peer-reviewed, and verified through replication.

In short – more research is needed, and no, Chinese scientists did not just create a bioweapon…

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Japan Confirmed All COVID Variants Were Engineered?!

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Did Japan just release evidence that all COVID variants were engineered in biolabs?!

Take a look at the viral claim, and find out what the facts really are!

Claim : Japan Confirmed All COVID Variants Were Engineered!

People are sharing an article by The People’s Voice (formerly NewsPunch), which claims that Japan just released evidence that all COVID variants were engineered in biolabs!

Here is an excerpt from the article, which is pretty long, so feel free to skip to the next section for the facts!

Japan Releases Evidence That ALL COVID Variants Were Engineered in Biolabs

An official new study out of Japan has concluded that all Covid variants were engineered in biolabs and intentionally released into the public.

The mainstream media has recently ramped up reports that Covid cases are on the rise in the run-up to the 2024 election.

Mainstream journalists and health officials have been promoting the return of masks and vaccines to tackle the spread of new variants EG.5.1 and BA.X.

However, a recent Japanese study suggests that the plot to lockdown the public again may be part of a sinister plan to take away more of our personal freedoms.

NN reports: The study found that all previous variants of SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID-19, were not naturally occurring but were, in fact, made in a laboratory.

Presumably, the latest EG.5.1 and BA.X variants were also engineered in a lab, according to the study.

The study was led by renowned Japanese Professors Atsuki Tanaka and Takayuki Miyazawa of Osaka Medical University and Kyoto University.

Tanaka and Miyazawa wanted to trace the historical evolution of the omicron variant of SARS-CoV2.

To trace the variant’s origins, they studied viral sequences found “in the wild” and deposited in public databases.

In doing this they found around 100 separate omicron subvariants that could not conceivably have arisen through natural processes.

The existence of these variants seems to provide definitive proof of large-scale lab creation and release of COVID-19 viruses.

Moreover, the variants appear to form comprehensive panels of mutations typical of those used in “reverse genetics” experiments to systematically test the properties of different parts of viruses, Substacker PSMI wrote.

According to the professors’ findings, COVID-19 and all of its variants came from a lab.

“Suppose the SARS-CoV-2 Omicron variant and its one amino acid reversion mutants were artificially and systematically generated,” they further clarify.

“In that case, we should suspect that the other variants (Alpha to Delta) may also be artificially generated viruses.”

They continue by raising questions about who may have engineered the virus and why.

“One idea, the hypothesis that these viruses were artificially generated, is more reasonable than proposing a novel mutation acquisition mechanism,” the paper reads.

“However, is there any reason to artificially create these mutants, which are unlikely to have occurred naturally, given the current SARS-CoV-2 epidemic?”

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Truth : Japan Did Not Confirm COVID Variants Were Engineered!

This is yet another example of FAKE NEWS about COVID-19 and the SARS-CoV-2 virus, and here are the reasons why…

Fact #1 : Study Does Not Appear To Be Official / Peer-Reviewed

First, let me just direct you to the study – Unnatural evolutionary processes of SARS-CoV-2 variants and possibility of deliberate natural selection, which you can read for yourself here.

This is not an official study conducted by the Japanese government, or its agencies. Neither does this study appear to be published or peer-reviewed by any journal.

This study appears to be only “published” in Zenodo on August 15, 2023. Zenodo is not a journal though, but a general-purpose open repository for research papers, data sets, and other research-related digital files.

Zenodo (https://zenodo.org) is an open repository for all scholarship, enabling researchers from all disciplines to share and preserve their research outputs, regardless of size or format.

While this does not mean that the study is rubbish, it is important for the study to be at least pass the peer-review process, which is itself merely the first step in any scientific research review process.

Fact #2 : Study Only Looked At Omicron Variants

While The People’s Voice article claimed that the study “concluded that all Covid variants were engineered in biolabs“, that is simply not the case. For one thing – the study only looked at Omicron variants.

In this study, we aimed to clarify the evolutionary processes leading to the formation of SARS-CoV-2 Omicron variants, focusing on Omicron variants with many amino acid mutations in the spike protein among SARS-CoV-2 isolates.

The study authors certainly never concluded that “all Covid variants were engineered in biolabs“.

Fact #3 : Study Never Said COVID-19 Was Artificially Created

While The People’s Voice article claimed that the study “concluded that all Covid variants were engineered in biolabs“, that is also not the case.

The authors pointed out in their study (PDF download) that they “do not conclude” that the SARS-CoV-2 virus was “artificially synthesized”.

Furthermore, we do not conclude that these viruses were artificially synthesized…

In addition, the authors went to some length to point out that it is impossible to know if the original SARS-CoV-2 virus was natural or artificial.

It has been claimed that SARS-CoV-2 is artificially generated because of the unnatural presence of a codon (CGG) encoding a contiguous arginine at the furin cleavage site of SARS-CoV-2. This claim is refuted based on the following facts;

1) there is no logical reason for a genetically engineered virus to utilize such a suboptimal furin cleavage site.

2) The only previous study on artificial insertion of furin cleavage sites at the S1/S2 boundary of the S protein of SARS-CoV-1 using the pseudotype virus experimental system utilized the optimal “RRSRR” sequence, which is different from the furin cleavage site’s sequence present in SARS-CoV-2.

3) There is also no evidence of previous studies at the Wuhan Institute of Virology that artificially inserted a complete furin cleavage site in coronaviruses.

4) Unnatural CGG codons adjacent to the arginine at the furin cleavage site are rare in coronaviruses but are observed at a particular frequency in SARS-CoV-1, SARS-CoV-2, and other human coronaviruses.

However, these are only declarations and are illogical. No one explained why a naturally occurring virus would utilize a suboptimal furin cleavage site. It has not been mentioned about technically possible to insert this furin cleavage site or a CGG codon artificially. Inserting a polybasic furin cleavage site on the S protein makes it impossible to conclude whether SARS-CoV-2 is a naturally occurring or artificial virus by discussing whether it is natural or artificial.

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Fact #4 : Study Never Said COVID-19 Was Intentionally Released

The People’s Voice article also claimed that the study “concluded that all Covid variants” were “intentionally released into the public“. Again, that is not the case.

The authors pointed out in their study (PDF download) that they “do not conclude” that the SARS-CoV-2 virus was “distributed based on malicious intent”.

… we do not conclude that these viruses were … distributed based on malicious intent.

Fact #5 : Study Hypothesises Gain-of-Function Creation Of Omicron

The study authors are hypothesising that the Omicron variants may have been artificially synthesised, based on their finding that “most of the mutations” in the S protein of the Omicron variants “are non-synonymous“, which they claim is “highly unnatural“.

The authors suggested that the mutations may have been “artificially generated to identify amino acids of the S protein involved in the infectivity and virulence” of the coronavirus.

While the authors did not explicitly say so, they are suggesting that the Omicron variant may have been introduced as an accidental lab leak of gain-of-function research into SARS-CoV-2.

Fact #6 : Study Called For Further Research

Rather that coming to the conclusion that “all Covid variants were engineered in biolabs and intentionally released into the public” as claimed by The People’s Voice article, the authors pointed out that their study had some weaknesses:

their databases had “a limited number of viral sequences”, and
their data may be unreliable due to “technical problems in sequencing or some malicious intent”

As such, their paper aims to “point out” that the SARS-CoV-2 virus has undergone “unthinkable mutations under conventional coronavirus mutation mechanisms“, and the authors “hope” that the “possibility of artificial theory” be “included in the discussion“.

In other words – the study authors suggest that more research should be conducted to look at the possibility that these COVID-19 variants were artificially created as part of reverse genetics / Gain-of-Function (GoF) research.

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He continues to devote countless hours every day writing about tech, medicine and science, in his pursuit of facts in a post-truth world.

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Jordon Trishton Walker on Directed Evolution : What are the Facts?

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Jordon Trishton Walker has gone viral for claiming that Pfizer is thinking of mutating COVID-19 using Directed Evolution!

Take a look at the viral claims, and find out what the facts really are!

Jordon Trishton Walker : Pfizer is thinking of mutating COVID-19 using Directed Evolution!

Project Veritas recently released a “sting” video, in which they appeared to have entrapped Jordon Trishton Walker, who was identified as the Pfizer Director of Research and Development Strategic Operations and mRNA Scientific Planning.

In that viral video, Jordon (JTW) who was trying to impress his Tinder date – an undercover Project Veritas journalist (PV), claimed that Pfizer was thinking of mutating the COVID-19 virus using Directed Evolution.

When his Tinder date / undercover Project Veritas journalist suggested that it was Gain-of-Function, Jordon insisted that Directed Evolution was different from Gain-of-Function.

Here is a partial transcript from the video. For the full transcript, please see our earlier article.

PV : Pfizer ultimately is thinking about mutating COVID?

PV : It [mutating COVID] sounds like Gain-of-Function to me.

JTW : I don’t know, it’s a little bit different. I think it’s different. It’s like, this, it’s definitely not Gain-of-Function.

PV : It sounds like it is, I mean, it’s okay.

Jordon Trishton Walker on Directed Evolution : What are the Facts?

Anti-vaccination activists are excitedly sharing the Project Veritas video of Jordon Trishton Walker as evidence that Pfizer was caught mutating the COVID-19 virus to develop new vaccines.

But the truth is – if you actually go through the Project Veritas video, it was really a nothingburger on Pfizer, and here are the reasons why…

Fact #1 : Project Veritas Is Infamous For Misinformation

Project Veritas is infamous for posting misinformation, and heavily edited videos that either cast a misleading angle on a story, or push misinformation.

In 2020, Project Veritas claimed that US Representative Ilhan Omar was linked to a “cash for ballots voter fraud scheme”, which turned out to be baseless.

In February 2021, Project Veritas posted a video of Mark Zuckerberg allegedly warning Facebook staff about the risks of mRNA vaccines, even though Zuckerberg changed his opinions three months earlier after asking Dr. Anthony Fauci to clarify the issue in a November 2020 livestream.

In October 2021, Project Veritas released a video of Pfizer scientist Nick Karl saying that natural immunity is better than vaccination, when in fact Nicholas Karl is a biochemist who was not involved in the development or manufacture of the Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine.

Fact #2 : His Job Does Not Involve Vaccine Development

While many people are obsessed in proving that Jordon Trishton Walker is really a Pfizer director of mRNA research, and not a consultant on loan / secondment from the Boston Consulting Group (BCG), it really does not matter.

Pfizer has a job position called Director, Research and Development and mRNA Scientific Strategy, which is close enough to the super-long title Jordon Trishton Walker is said to hold.

Ironically, that post is at the Pfizer Pearl River R&D facility near New York – the same place Nicholas Karl, the biochemist who got punked by Project Veritas in 2021 also worked at!

The job description, however, clearly shows that the director of R&D and mRNA Scientific Strategy is an office executive mainly dealing with business development.

Drive select projects within WRDM (Worldwide Research, Development and Medical) to deliver business critical insights to Pfizer leaders, such as the Executive Leadership Team, in partnership with internal and external stakeholders. These projects may include:

Leading select operational initiatives across Pfizer therapeutic areas, including delivering key aspects of the Corporate Strategic Plan and representing WRDM on corporate project teams.
Developing the strategic vision for mRNA technology at Pfizer and working cross-functionally with key stakeholders, such as Business Development, to enable decision-making on critical topics and ensure successful execution of the strategy. Identifying and prioritizing opportunities to deliver innovative medicines across Pfizer’s portfolio and advancing these priorities in collaboration with Pfizer’s Chief Scientific Officers and other WRDM leaders.
Maximizing the effectiveness of the President of WRDM on key internal and external deliverables.

Fact #3 : Jordon Walker Never Said Pfizer Was Mutating COVID-19 Virus

If you watch the Project Veritas video or read the transcript carefully, you will realise that Jordon Trishton Walker never said that Pfizer was mutating the COVID-19 virus. He only said that it was “a thought that came up” in one of the meetings.

… it was a thought that came up in a meeting and we were like, why do we not — it was like, we’re going to consider that with more discussions.

Fact #4 : Viruses Are Already Mutating Globally

It seems silly for Pfizer to intentionally infect monkeys to mutate the COVID-19 virus, to try and predict the next variant, when the virus is mutating rapidly globally – every infected person is literally a mutation factory!

Infecting monkeys also may not deliver the same variants as viruses that mutate in human beings, and may not serve as a good predictor of future variants.

Therefore, it would be much cheaper and certainly more accurate for Pfizer scientists to simply collect samples of new variants that are created every few months!

Fact #5 : Pfizer Modifying COVID-19 To Test PAXLOVID

Pfizer responded to the claims on January 27, 2023, stating that it has not conducted gain-of-function or directed evolution research when it came to the Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine (marketed as COMIRNATY).

However, Pfizer stated that it does modify the COVID-19 virus to produce the spike protein of the new variants identified by health authorities, to test whether its vaccine would continue to work against the new variants.

If any gain-of-function or directed evolution work was being done on the COVID-19 virus, Pfizer was only doing it to test if the virus can evade nirmatrelvir – the patented half of the PAXLOVID oral medication it developed.

Fact #6 : Directed Evolution Cannot Predict Dominant Mutation

Directed evolution is a form of protein engineering that uses mutagenesis and the natural selection process to create proteins with desired characteristics.

While the mutagenesis process it uses can create many variants, directed evolution cannot predict which variants will end up becoming dominant.

That’s why it’s called directed evolution – the scientists direct the evolution of a gene to produce proteins they want, not predict what proteins will become “dominant”.

Jordon himself pointed out to the Project Veritas journalist that even if Pfizer tries mutating the virus, it may not predict future variants.

JTW : Yeah, if it works.

PV : What do you mean if it works?

JTW : Because some of the times there are mutations that pop up that we are not prepared for like the delta and omicron and things like that, so…

Fact #6 : mRNA Technology Allows For Quick Vaccine Development

In any case, it doesn’t make much sense for Pfizer to try and “predict” the next variant, because the mRNA technology allows for very quick vaccine development.

Moderna, for example, took only TWO DAYS to design its mRNA vaccine after Chinese scientists released the SARS-CoV-2 virus genome, and only 26 days to create its first batch of vaccines.

In other words – Pfizer, or rather BioNTech scientists, only need the genomic data of the latest variant to create a new vaccine. There is no real need to predict the next variant, because developing a new vaccine with mRNA technology is so quick!

Why mRNA vaccines take so long to get to market has more to do with testing and red tape, than actually creating them!

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Dr. Adrian Wong has been writing about tech and science since 1997, even publishing a book with Prentice Hall called Breaking Through The BIOS Barrier (ISBN 978-0131455368) while in medical school.

He continues to devote countless hours every day writing about tech, medicine and science, in his pursuit of facts in a post-truth world.

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Pfizer denies Gain of Function, Directed Evolution claim!

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In response to the viral Project Veritas video, Pfizer has publicly denied conducting any Gain of Function, or Directed Evolution research in developing their COVID-19 vaccine!

Take a look at the viral claim, and find out what the facts really are!

Is Pfizer Mutating COVID-19 Virus Using Gain of Function / Directed Evolution?!

Project Veritas recently released a viral “sting” video involving Jordon Trishton Walker, who was identified as the Pfizer Director of Research and Development Strategic Operations and mRNA Scientific Planning.

In that viral video, short clips were edited to show Jordon Trishton Walker telling a Project Veritas journalist that Pfizer is mutating the COVID-19 virus to continue profiting from vaccines!

Project Veritas also edited their blurbs to make it sound like Jordon was admitting that the COVID-19 virus was created in Wuhan, China.

BREAKING: @Pfizer Exploring “Mutating” COVID-19 Virus For New Vaccines

“Don’t tell anyone this… There is a risk… have to be very controlled to make sure this virus you mutate doesn’t create something… the way that the virus started in Wuhan, to be honest”.

BREAKING: @Pfizer Exploring "Mutating" COVID-19 Virus For New Vaccines

"Don't tell anyone this…There is a risk…have to be very controlled to make sure this virus you mutate doesn't create something…the way that the virus started in Wuhan, to be honest."#DirectedEvolution pic.twitter.com/xaRvlD5qTo

— Project Veritas (@Project_Veritas) January 26, 2023

Pfizer Denies Gain of Function, Directed Evolution Claims!

At 8 PM on Friday, January 27, 2023, Pfizer issued a public statement to address the gain of function and directed evolution claims made in the Project Veritas video.

The statement did not address whether Jordon Trishton Walker is a Pfizer employee, or a consultant on secondment from the Boston Consulting Group.

Instead, the statement directly refutes the allegations that Pfizer conducted gain of function, or directed evolution research in developing its COVID-19 vaccine. Here is a quick summary of what Pfizer said:

Research Involving Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 Vaccine

Pfizer has not conducted gain of function research in the ongoing development of its COVID-19 vaccine.
Pfizer has not conducted directed evolution research in the ongoing development of its COVID-19 vaccine.
Working with partners (like BioNTech), Pfizer has modified the original SARS-CoV-2 virus so it produces the spike protein from new variants of concern that have been identified by public health authorities, to test their immune escape potential against antibodies produced by its COVID-19 vaccine antibodies.

This matches up with what Jordon Trishton Walker actually said in the viral Project Veritas video – Pfizer did not actually conduct any gain-of-function, or directed evolution research.

… it was a thought that came up in a meeting and we were like, why do we not — it was like, we’re going to consider that with more discussions.

Research Involving Pfizer PAXLOVID

Pfizer has also performed laboratory (in vitro) work to identify potential mutations that can cause resistance to nirmatrelvir – one of the two antiviral components in its PAXLOVID oral treatment for COVID-19.
Most of this work was conducted using computer simulations, or mutations of the main protease – an enzyme the virus uses to breaks down proteins.
However, Pfizer may engineer the SARS-CoV-2 virus to allow the assessment of antiviral activity in cells.
These in vitro resistance selection experiments are conducted in cells incubated with the SARS-CoV-2 virus and nirmatrelvir in a secure Biosafety Level 3 (BSL3) laboratory, to assess whether the main protease enzyme can mutate to become resistant to nirmatrelvir.

Pfizer appears to be admitting that it does engineer the COVID-19 virus, but clarifying that it was not done to create new vaccines. Rather, such research is being done to determine if PAXLOVID may potentially fail to work against a new variant.

Pfizer does not state whether they are engineering SARS-CoV-2 through gain-of-function or directed evolution, but such research is being conducted to determine whether the virus can mutate to become resistant to nirmatrelvir, which is the new protease inhibitor they developed.

However, as I pointed out in my earlier article, Pfizer does not actually need to perform such research to develop new COVID-19 vaccines using mRNA technology.

Official Pfizer Statement On Gain of Function, Directed Evolution Claims

Here is the official Pfizer statement on the gain of function and directed evolution claims made in the Project Veritas video.

New York, N.Y., January 27, 2023 – Allegations have recently been made related to gain of function and directed evolution research at Pfizer and the company would like to set the record straight.

In the ongoing development of the Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine, Pfizer has not conducted gain of function or directed evolution research. Working with collaborators, we have conducted research where the original SARS-CoV-2 virus has been used to express the spike protein from new variants of concern. This work is undertaken once a new variant of concern has been identified by public health authorities. This research provides a way for us to rapidly assess the ability of an existing vaccine to induce antibodies that neutralize a newly identified variant of concern. We then make this data available through peer reviewed scientific journals and use it as one of the steps to determine whether a vaccine update is required.

In addition, to meet U.S. and global regulatory requirements for our oral treatment, PAXLOVID™, Pfizer undertakes in vitro work (e.g., in a laboratory culture dish) to identify potential resistance mutations to nirmatrelvir, one of PAXLOVID’s two components. With a naturally evolving virus, it is important to routinely assess the activity of an antiviral. Most of this work is conducted using computer simulations or mutations of the main protease–a non-infectious part of the virus. In a limited number of cases when a full virus does not contain any known gain of function mutations, such virus may be engineered to enable the assessment of antiviral activity in cells. In addition, in vitro resistance selection experiments are undertaken in cells incubated with SARS-CoV-2 and nirmatrelvir in our secure Biosafety level 3 (BSL3) laboratory to assess whether the main protease can mutate to yield resistant strains of the virus. It is important to note that these studies are required by U.S. and global regulators for all antiviral products and are carried out by many companies and academic institutions in the U.S. and around the world.

Fact-based information rooted in sound science is vitally important to overcoming the COVID-19 pandemic and Pfizer remains committed to transparency and helping alleviate the devastating burden of this disease.

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Dr. Adrian Wong has been writing about tech and science since 1997, even publishing a book with Prentice Hall called Breaking Through The BIOS Barrier (ISBN 978-0131455368) while in medical school.

He continues to devote countless hours every day writing about tech, medicine and science, in his pursuit of facts in a post-truth world.

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Did Project Veritas Show Pfizer Mutating COVID-19?!

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Did a viral Project Veritas video show that Pfizer is mutating the COVID-19 virus to create new vaccines through Directed Evolution?!

Take a look at the viral claim, and find out what the facts really are!

Project Veritas : Pfizer Mutating COVID-19 Virus For New Vaccines!

Project Veritas released another “sting” video involving Jordon Trishton Walker, who was identified as the Pfizer Director of Research and Development Strategic Operations and mRNA Scientific Planning.

In that viral video, short clips were edited to show Jordon (JTW) telling a Project Veritas journalist (PV) that Pfizer is mutating the COVID-19 virus to try and preemptively develop new vaccines.

Here is a transcript from the video, but it is very long as Project Veritas appeared to have been edited to repeat parts of the video. So please feel free to skip to the next section for the facts.

PV : Pfizer ultimately is thinking about mutating COVID?

JTW : Well, that is not what we say to the public. No.
JTW : Don’t tell anyone this by the way, you have to promise you won’t tell anyone.
JTW : We’re exploring like – you know how the virus keeps mutating?
JTW : Well one of the things we’re exploring is like, why don’t we just mutate it ourselves so we could- we could create preemptively develop new vaccines, right? So we have to do that. If we’re gonna do that though, there’s a risk of like, as you could imagine, no one wants to be having a pharma company mutating fucking viruses.
JTW : You have to be like very controlled to make sure that this virus that you mutate doesn’t create something like, you know, goes everywhere.
JTW : Which, I suspect is the way that the virus started in Wuhan, to be honest. Like, it makes no sense that this virus popped out of nowhere.

PV : Yeah, I know.

JTW : It’s bullshit.

PV : It [mutating COVID] sounds like Gain-of-Function to me.

JTW : I don’t know, it’s a little bit different. I think it’s different. It’s like, this, it’s definitely not Gain-of-Function.

PV : It sounds like it is, I mean, it’s okay.

JTW : No no no, but directed evolution is very different.
JTW : Well you’re not supposed to do Gain-of-Function research with the viruses.
JTW : They’d rather we not, but we do these selected structure mutations to try to see if we can make them more potent.
JTW : So, there is research ongoing about that. I don’t know how that’s going to work.
JTW : There better not be any more outbreaks cause, like, Jesus Christ.

JTW : It is a revolving door for all government officials.
JTW : It’s pretty good for the industry to be honest. It’s bad for everyone else in America.

PV : Why is it bad for everyone else [in America]?

JTW : Because if the regulators, who review our drugs, you know that once they stop being a regulator, they want to go work for the company, they are not going to be as harsh on the company where they’re getting their job.

PV : What is Pfizer doing, I guess to optimise, you know, the vaccines now?

JTW : Oh, we actually had a meeting about that today. So there’s a lot.

PV : Really?

JTW : We’re doing, ugh, I don’t know if I should say this.

JTW : We’re exploring like – you know how the virus keeps mutating?
JTW : Well one of the things we’re exploring is like, why don’t we just mutate it ourselves so we could focus on – so we could create preemptively develop new vaccines, right? So we have to do that. If we’re gonna do that though, there’s a risk of like, as you could imagine, no one wants to be having a pharma company mutating fucking viruses.

PV : Yeah. Okay.

JTW : So, we’re like, do we want to do this? So that’s like one of the things we’re considering. For, like, the future, like maybe we can like, create new versions of the vaccines and things like that.

PV : Okay. So, Pfizer ultimately is thinking about mutating COVID?

JTW : Well, that is not what we say to the public. No, that’s why it was, it was a thought that came up in a meeting and we were like, why do we not — it was like, we’re going to consider that with more discussions.
JTW : That exactly, actually. We’re like, wait a minute, like, people won’t like that.
JTW : So, the way that we’re thinking about – don’t tell anyone this by the way. You have to promise you won’t tell anyone, okay?
JTW : So, the way it would work is like we put them in – the virus in these monkeys. And then we successively, like, cause them to keep infecting each other.
JTW : And we collect serial samples from them, and then, the ones that are more infectious, to like, the virus we’ll put them in another monkey and you just constantly actively mutate it. That’s one way.
JTW : Or we could even do like, directed like simulation, which like we tend not to prefer. And they just sample what the different like, proteins on the surface of the virus look like over time.
JTW : So, then you can see the mutation. You can now force it to mutate in a certain way you want it.

PV : Okay.

JTW : But you have to be like very controlled to make sure that this virus that you mutate doesn’t create something like, you know, goes everywhere.
JTW : Which, I suspect is the way that the virus started in Wuhan, to be honest. Like, it makes non sense that this virus popped out of nowhere.

PV : Yeah, I know.

JTW : It’s bullshit.

PV : So, I mean, when is Pfizer going to implement the mutation of all these viruses?

JTW : I don’t know, it depends on how the experiments work out because this is just like, something we’re trying, right?

PV : It sounds like Gain-of-Function to me.

JTW : I don’t know, it’s a little bit different. I think it’s different. It’s like, this, it’s definitely not Gain-of-Function.

PV : It sounds like it is, I mean, it’s okay.

JTW : No no no, but directed evolution is very different.

PV : Directed evolution?

JTW : Directed evolution.

PV : Directed evolution, okay. Well, so, I mean, is that what it is?

JTW : Maybe, I don’t know.

JTW : Well you’re not supposed to do Gain-of-Function research with the viruses.
JTW : They’d rather we not, but we do these selected structure mutations to try to see if we can make them more potent.
JTW : So, there is research ongoing about that. I don’t know how that’s going to work.
JTW : There better not be any more outbreaks cause, like, Jesus Christ.

PV : So, tell me more, what’s developing with the whole, you know virus mutation process?

JTW : Well, they are still kind of conducting experiments on it, but it seems like, from what I’ve heard, they’re kind of optimising it, but they’re going slow cause everyone’s very cautious, like, you know, obviously they don’t want to accelerate it too much, but I think they’re also just trying to do it as an exploratory thing because you obviously don’t want to advertise that you are figuring out future mutations.

PV : So, did that – did the whole virus mutation thing come from your executive Sarah [Wu]?

JTW : No, that came from – we have like chief scientific officers in the other divisions.

PV : What’s the goal for Pfizer doing that [COVID mutations]?

JTW : So, part of what they want to do is try to figure it out – to some extent, try to figure out like, you know how there’s all these new strains and variants that just pop up?
JTW : Why don’t we try to like, catch them before they [variants] pop up in nature and we can develop a vaccine prophylactically, before, like, new variants. So that’s why they’re thinking like, if you do it controlled in a lab, then we say this is a new epitope, and so if it comes out later on, in the public, then you already have a vaccine kind of working.

PV : Oh my God. That’s perfect. Isn’t that the best business model though?
PV : Just control nature before nature even happens itself, right?

JTW : Yeah, if it works.

PV : What do you mean if it works?

JTW : Because some of the times there are mutations that pop up that we are not prepared for like the delta and omicron and things like that, so…
JTW : Who knows? I mean, either way, it’s going to be a cash cow. COVID will probably be a cash cow for us for a while going forward. Like, obviously, like…

PV : Well I think the whole, you know, research of the viruses and mutating it [them], like, would be the ultimate cash cow.

JTW : Yeah, it’d be perfect.

JTW : It [Pfizer] is a revolving door for all government officials.

PV : Wow!

JTW : Yeah, for any industry though. So, in the pharma industry, all the government officials who, you know, review our drugs eventually, come work for pharma companies.
JTW : And the military – all the army and defence government officials eventually go work for the defence companies afterwards.

PV : How do you feel about that revolving door?

JTW : It’s pretty good for the industry to be honest. It’s bad for everyone else in America.

PV : Why is it bad for everyone else [in America]?

Show less

BREAKING: @Pfizer Exploring "Mutating" COVID-19 Virus For New Vaccines

"Don't tell anyone this…There is a risk…have to be very controlled to make sure this virus you mutate doesn't create something…the way that the virus started in Wuhan, to be honest."#DirectedEvolution pic.twitter.com/xaRvlD5qTo

— Project Veritas (@Project_Veritas) January 26, 2023

Project Veritas Did Not Show Pfizer Mutating COVID-19 Virus!

Anti-vaccination activists are excitedly sharing the Project Veritas video as evidence that Pfizer was caught mutating the COVID-19 virus to develop new vaccines.

But the truth is – if you actually go through the Project Veritas video, it was really a nothingburger on Pfizer, and here are the reasons why…

Fact #1 : Project Veritas Is Infamous For Misinformation

Project Veritas is infamous for posting misinformation, and heavily edited videos that either cast a misleading angle on a story, or push misinformation.

In 2020, Project Veritas claimed that US Representative Ilhan Omar was linked to a “cash for ballots voter fraud scheme”, which turned out to be baseless.

Fact #2 : Pfizer mRNA Vaccine Created By BioNTech

What many people often forget is that the COMIRNATY mRNA vaccine was not created by Pfizer, but a German company called BioNTech, helmed by Uğur Şahin and Özlem Türeci – Germans of Turkish descent.

Pfizer is primarily the US manufacturing and testing partner for the BioNTech BNT162b2 vaccine, while in China, that would be Fosun Pharma.

Why this is important is because the bulk of the mRNA vaccine research work is done by BioNTech, not Pfizer or Fosun Pharma.

So it is unlikely that Jordon Trishton Walker would actually be involved in the development of any mRNA vaccine, even if he is the Pfizer Director of Research and Development Strategic Operations and mRNA Scientific Planning.

Fact #3 : His Job Does Not Involve Vaccine Development

Pfizer has a job position called Director, Research and Development and mRNA Scientific Strategy, which is close enough to the super-long title Jordon Trishton Walker is said to hold.

Ironically, that post is at the Pfizer Pearl River R&D facility near New York – the same place Nicholas Karl, the biochemist who got punked by Project Veritas in 2021 also worked at!

The job description, however, clearly shows that the director of R&D and mRNA Scientific Strategy is an office executive mainly dealing with business development.

Leading select operational initiatives across Pfizer therapeutic areas, including delivering key aspects of the Corporate Strategic Plan and representing WRDM on corporate project teams.
Developing the strategic vision for mRNA technology at Pfizer and working cross-functionally with key stakeholders, such as Business Development, to enable decision-making on critical topics and ensure successful execution of the strategy. Identifying and prioritizing opportunities to deliver innovative medicines across Pfizer’s portfolio and advancing these priorities in collaboration with Pfizer’s Chief Scientific Officers and other WRDM leaders.
Maximizing the effectiveness of the President of WRDM on key internal and external deliverables.

Fact #4 : Jordon Walker Never Said Pfizer Was Mutating COVID-19 Virus

If you watch the Project Veritas video or read the transcript above carefully, you will realise that Jordon Trishton Walker never said that Pfizer was mutating the COVID-19 virus. He only said that it was “a thought that came up” in one of the meetings.

… it was a thought that came up in a meeting and we were like, why do we not — it was like, we’re going to consider that with more discussions.

Fact #5 : Viruses Are Already Mutating Globally

Infecting monkeys also may not deliver the same variants as viruses that mutate in human beings, and may not serve as a good predictor of future variants.

Therefore, it would be much cheaper and certainly more accurate for Pfizer scientists to simply collect samples of new variants that are created every few months!

Fact #6 : Directed Evolution Cannot Predict Dominant Mutation

Directed evolution is a form of protein engineering that uses mutagenesis and the natural selection process to create proteins with desired characteristics.

While the mutagenesis process it uses can create many variants, directed evolution cannot predict which variants will end up becoming dominant.

That’s why it’s called directed evolution – the scientists direct the evolution of a gene to produce proteins they want, not predict what proteins will become “dominant”.

Jordon himself pointed out to the Project Veritas journalist that even if Pfizer tries mutating the virus, it may not predict future variants.

JTW : Yeah, if it works.

PV : What do you mean if it works?

JTW : Because some of the times there are mutations that pop up that we are not prepared for like the delta and omicron and things like that, so…

Fact #7 : mRNA Technology Allows For Quick Vaccine Development

In any case, it doesn’t make much sense for Pfizer to try and “predict” the next variant, because the mRNA technology allows for very quick vaccine development.

Moderna, for example, took only TWO DAYS to design its mRNA vaccine after Chinese scientists released the SARS-CoV-2 virus genome, and only 26 days to create its first batch of vaccines.

Why mRNA vaccines take so long to get to market has more to do with testing and red tape, than actually creating them!

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Dr. Adrian Wong has been writing about tech and science since 1997, even publishing a book with Prentice Hall called Breaking Through The BIOS Barrier (ISBN 978-0131455368) while in medical school.

He continues to devote countless hours every day writing about tech, medicine and science, in his pursuit of facts in a post-truth world.

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