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Wuhan Institute of Virology

Coordinates: 30°22′28.0″N 114°15′58.4″E / 30.374444°N 114.266222°E / 30.374444; 114.266222
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Wuhan Institute of Virology
中国科学院武汉病毒研究所
AbbreviationWIV
Predecessor
  • Wuhan Microbiology Laboratory
  • South China Institute of Microbiology
  • Wuhan Microbiology Institute
  • Microbiology Institute of Hubei Province
Formation1956
FounderChen Huagui, Gao Shangyin
HeadquartersJiangxia, Wuhan, Hubei, China
Coordinates30°22′28.0″N 114°15′58.4″E / 30.374444°N 114.266222°E / 30.374444; 114.266222
Director-General
Wang Yanyi
Secretary of Party Committee
Xiao Gengfu[1]
Deputy Director-General
Gong Peng, Guan Wuxiang, Xiao Gengfu
Parent organization
Chinese Academy of Sciences
Websitewhiov.cas.cn

The Wuhan Institute of Virology (WIV; Chinese: 中国科学院武汉病毒研究所; pinyin: Zhōngguó Kēxuéyuàn Wǔhàn Bìngdú Yánjiūsuǒ) is a research institute administered by the Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS) on virology, and is located in Jiangxia District, Wuhan, Hubei, China. In 2015, the Institute opened the first biosafety level 4 (BSL–4) laboratory to be built in mainland China.

History

The Institute was founded in 1956 as the Wuhan Microbiology Laboratory under the Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS). In 1961, it became the South China Institute of Microbiology, and in 1962 was renamed to Wuhan Microbiology Institute. In 1970, it became the Microbiology Institute of Hubei Province when the Hubei Commission of Science and Technology took over the administration. In June 1978, it was returned to the CAS and renamed Wuhan Institute of Virology.[2]

In 2015, the National Bio-safety Laboratory was completed at a cost of 300 million yuan ($44 million) at the Institute in collaboration with French engineers from Lyon, and was the first biosafety level 4 (BSL–4) laboratory to be built in mainland China.[3][4] The laboratory took over a decade to complete from its conception in 2003, and scientists such as U.S. molecular biologist Richard H. Ebright expressed concern of previous escapes of the SARS virus at Chinese laboratories in Beijing, and the pace and scale of China's plans for expansion into BSL–4 laboratories.[3] The Laboratory has strong ties to the Galveston National Laboratory in the University of Texas.[5] In 2020, Ebright called the Institute a "world-class research institution that does world-class research in virology and immunology".[5]

2019–20 coronavirus outbreak

Main article: 2019–20 coronavirus outbreak

In February 2020, the New York Times reported that a team led by Shi Zhengli at the Institute were the first to identify, analyze and name the genetic sequence of the Novel coronavirus (2019-nCoV), and upload it to public databases for scientists around the world to understand,[6][7] and publishing papers in Nature.[8] In February 2020, the Institute applied for a patent in China for the use of remdesivir, an experimental drug owned by Gilead Sciences, which the Institute found inhibited the virus invitro;[9] in a move which also raised concerns regarding international intellectual property rights.[10] In a statement, the Institute said it would not exercise its new Chinese patent rights "if relevant foreign companies intend to contribute to the prevention and control of China’s epidemic".[11]

The Institute was rumored as a source for the 2019–20 coronavirus outbreak as a result of allegations of bioweapon research,[12][13] which was debunked as a conspiracy theory by The Washington Post in a piece titled: "Experts debunk fringe theory linking China’s coronavirus to weapons research".[5][12] The Post cited U.S. experts who explained why the Institute was not suitable for bioweapon research, that most countries had abandoned bioweapons as fruitless, and that there was no evidence that the virus was genetically engineered.[5][12] In February 2020, The Financial Times reported from virus expert and global lead coronavirus investigator, Trevor Bradford, who said that "The evidence we have is that the mutations [in the virus] are completely consistent with natural evolution".[14]

During January and February 2020, the Institute was subject to further conspiracy theories, and concerns that it was the source of the outbreak through accidental leakage,[15] which it publicly refuted.[16] Members of the Institute's research teams were also subject to various conspiracy theories,[17][18] including Shi, who made various public statements defending the Institute.[19] While Ebright refuted several of conspiracy theories regarding the WIV, he told BBC China that this did not represent the possibility of the virus being "completely ruled out" from entering the population due to a laboratory accident.[15]

Research centers

The Institute contains the following research centers:[20]

  • Center for Emerging Infectious Disease
  • Chinese Virus Resources and Bioinformatics Center
  • Center of Applied and Environmental Microbiology
  • Department of Analytical Biochemistry and Biotechnology
  • Department of Molecular Virology

See also

References

  1. ^ "现任领导".
  2. ^ "History". Wuhan Institute of Virology, CAS. Archived from the original on 29 July 2019. Retrieved 26 January 2020.
  3. ^ a b David Cyranoski (2017-02-22). "Inside the Chinese lab poised to study world's most dangerous pathogens". Nature. 592 (7642): 399–400. Bibcode:2017Natur.542..399C. doi:10.1038/nature.2017.21487. PMID 28230144.
  4. ^ "China Inaugurates the First Biocontainment Level 4 Laboratory in Wuhan". Wuhan Institute of Virology, Chinese Academy of Sciences. 3 February 2015. Archived from the original on 3 March 2016. Retrieved 9 April 2016.
  5. ^ a b c d Adam Taylor (29 January 2020). "Experts debunk fringe theory linking China's coronavirus to weapons research". Washington Post. Retrieved 3 February 2020.
  6. ^ Chris Buckley; Steven Lee Myers (1 February 2020). "As New Coronavirus Spread, China's Old Habits Delayed Fight". The New York Times. Retrieved 3 February 2020.
  7. ^ Jon Cohen (1 February 2020). "Mining coronavirus genomes for clues to the outbreak's origins". Science. Retrieved 4 February 2020. The viral sequences, most researchers say, also knock down the idea the pathogen came from a virology institute in Wuhan.
  8. ^ Shi Zhengli; Team of 29 researchers at the WIV (3 February 2020). "A pneumonia outbreak associated with a new coronavirus of probable bat origin". Nature: 1–4. doi:10.1038/s41586-020-2012-7. PMID 32015507.{{cite journal}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
  9. ^ Shi Zhengli; Team of 10 researchers at the WIV (4 February 2020). "Remdesivir and chloroquine effectively inhibit the recently emerged novel coronavirus (2019-nCoV) in vitro". Nature: 1–3. doi:10.1038/s41422-020-0282-0. PMID 32020029.{{cite journal}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
  10. ^ "China Wants to Patent Gilead's Experimental Coronavirus Drug". Bloomberg News. Retrieved 2020-02-05.
  11. ^ Denise Grady (6 February 2020). "China Begins Testing an Antiviral Drug in Coronavirus Patients". New York Times. Retrieved 8 February 2020.
  12. ^ a b c Josh Taylor (31 January 2020). "Bat soup, dodgy cures and 'diseasology': the spread of coronavirus misinformation". The Guardian. Retrieved 3 February 2020.
  13. ^ Kate Gibson (3 February 2020). "Twitter bans Zero Hedge after it posts coronavirus conspiracy theory". CBS News. Retrieved 4 February 2020.
  14. ^ Clive Cookson (14 February 2020). "Coronavirus was not genetically engineered in a Wuhan lab, says expert". Financial Times. Retrieved 14 February 2020.
  15. ^ a b "[TRANSLATED] Wuhan Pneumonia: "Wuhan Virus Research Institute" in the eyes of the outbreak and fake news storm". BBC News China. 5 February 2020. Retrieved 8 February 2020.
  16. ^ Yang Rui; Feng Yuding; Zhao Jinchao; Matthew Walsh (7 February 2020). "Wuhan Virology Lab Deputy Director Again Slams Coronavirus Conspiracies". Caixin. Retrieved 8 February 2020.
  17. ^ Broderick, Ryan (31 January 2020). "A Pro-Trump Blog Doxed A Chinese Scientist It Falsely Accused Of Creating The Coronavirus As A Bioweapon". Buzzfeed. Retrieved 31 January 2020.
  18. ^ Derek Hawkins (1 February 2020). "Twitter bans Zero Hedge account after it doxxed a Chinese researcher over coronavirus". Washington Post. Retrieved 3 February 2020.
  19. ^ Stephen Chen (6 February 2020). "Coronavirus: bat scientist's cave exploits offer hope to beat virus 'sneakier than Sars'". South China Morning Post. Retrieved 8 February 2020.
  20. ^ "Administration". Wuhan Institute of Virology, CAS. Archived from the original on 29 July 2019. Retrieved 26 January 2020.
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