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Fauci, as the head of the National Institutes of Health (NIH), directed the use of American taxpayer funds for an experiment involving coronaviruses obtained from the Chinese lab suspected as the origin of the Covid-19 pandemic, Daily Mail exposed.
This research took place over a year before the global outbreak. In 2018, the NIH, under Fauci’s supervision, exposed 12 Egyptian fruit bats to a ‘SARS-like’ virus known as WIV1 in a Montana laboratory. This virus was transported from the Wuhan lab, which is suspected of causing the Covid pandemic, and it was tested on bats acquired from a questionable source, a Maryland zoo.
The study, which was recently brought to light by a campaign group, concluded that the novel virus did not induce a strong infection in the bats.
However, it highlights the connections between the U.S. government and the Wuhan lab, as well as the funding of potentially hazardous virus research worldwide. From 2015 to 2023, at least seven U.S. entities provided NIH grant money for experiments in Chinese labs, amounting to $3,306,061.
The experiment, titled “SARS-Like Coronavirus WIV1-CoV Does Not Replicate in Egyptian Fruit Bats,” was published in the Viruses journal in 2018 and initially identified by a group of internet activists investigating the origins of Covid-19 and the lab leak theory. The White Coat Waste Project is now using the Freedom of Information Act to request further information about this experiment. This project is dedicated to preventing American tax dollars from financing dangerous virus research abroad.
The 2018 experiment was conducted at the NIH’s Rocky Mountain Laboratories in Montana, under Fauci’s oversight. It was a collaborative effort between the NIH’s Rocky Mountain Laboratories and Ralph Baric, a collaborator from the University of North Carolina, who has connections to the Wuhan Institute of Virology. The researchers used 12 Egyptian fruit bats from a Maryland zoo and exposed them to the WIV1-coronavirus, originally found in Chinese rufous horseshoe bats.
Daily examinations and various measurements were performed on the bats, including body weight and temperature. Samples were collected from the bats’ noses and throats. On days three, seven, and 28, four of the bats were euthanized, and their organs were collected for analysis. Despite these efforts, the WIV1-coronavirus did not cause a significant infection in the bats, and there was limited evidence of virus replication.
The bats had been transferred from a problematic Maryland zoo, the Catoctin Wildlife Preserve, which had a history of animal welfare violations. This zoo was responsible for sending the bats to the Montana facility.
Despite the lack of transmission in the bats in 2018, dangerous virus research with pandemic potential has continued in various parts of the world. There is ongoing debate about the origins of the Covid-19 pandemic, with the lab-leak theory gaining support from the FBI and other government agencies. A scientist central to the lab-leak theory has acknowledged the possibility that the virus could have escaped from a Chinese research facility.
Recent reports have also revealed that Chinese researchers have been working on novel pathogens with a high likelihood of infecting humans, raising concerns that similar experiments could lead to future outbreaks. Additionally, American taxpayer funds have been directed to laboratories in China conducting questionable and dangerous experiments on animals.
It is worth noting that the United States conducts the most gain-of-function virus research, which involves making pathogens more infectious or deadly. Proponents argue that these experiments can help prepare for future outbreaks, but critics emphasize the risks of accidental releases. Concerns led to the closure of a taxpayer-funded $125 million project aimed at hunting for new viruses, as officials feared the potential catastrophic risks associated with such research. Anthony Bellotti, the president and founder of the White Coat Waste Project, described the experiment as a “real-life horror story” involving a questionable zoo, an NIH animal experimenter, and a government virus lab overseen by Dr. Fauci. This research involved infecting bats with a coronavirus directly obtained from the Wuhan lab suspected of causing COVID-19.
