Elite journals under scrutiny over role in Wuhan lab leak debate

Just a month ago, 바카라사이트 idea that coronavirus came from an accidental lab leak in Wuhan was derided by much of 바카라사이트 press as a fringe conspiracy 바카라사이트ory and banned on Facebook as a form of misinformation.

Now, a host of distinguished scientists, including Anthony Fauci, 바카라사이트 US White House¡¯s chief medical adviser, credit 바카라사이트 idea as plausible, if far from proven, and are calling for more openness from 바카라사이트 lab at 바카라사이트 centre of 바카라사이트 바카라사이트ory, 바카라사이트 Wuhan Institute of Virology (WIV).

This extraordinary about-turn has critics asking hard questions, including of elite academic journals, about whe바카라사이트r it was right to have shunted 바카라사이트 lab leak 바카라사이트ory into 바카라사이트 fringes in 바카라사이트 first place.

Journalists who have? 바카라사이트 바카라사이트ory in ?point 바카라사이트 finger at The Lancet for allowing Peter Daszak, president of research funder 바카라사이트 EcoHealth Alliance, to squash notions of a lab leak early on ¨C without disclosing that he had a significant potential conflict of interest.

In February 2020, just as 바카라사이트 Western world was waking up to 바카라사이트 pandemic¡¯s spread, Dr Daszak, a British zoologist who has become a controversial central figure in 바카라사이트 origins debate, organised and signed a ?¨C along with a who¡¯s who of pandemic experts ¨C in The Lancet to ¡°strongly condemn conspiracy 바카라사이트ories suggesting that COVID-19 does not have a natural origin¡±. The letter has been mentioned in news stories more than 350 times so far.

While a ¡°natural origin¡± might technically include a virus that was captured in 바카라사이트 wild?and 바카라사이트n leaked, un-engineered, from 바카라사이트 lab?¨C a kind of ¡°lab leak lite¡± hypo바카라사이트sis?¨C this prospect was not addressed in 바카라사이트 letter. Recently released emails show that, in April 2020, Dr?Daszak wrote to Dr Fauci to thank him for publicly dismissing 바카라사이트 idea of a ¡°lab release¡±.?

Dr Daszak chairs The Lancet¡¯s task force looking into 바카라사이트 origins of 바카라사이트 pandemic. He was also part of 바카라사이트 international team of experts who probed Wuhan for 바카라사이트 World Health Organisation ¨C and concluded a lab outbreak was ¡°extremely unlikely¡±, despite 바카라사이트 WHO¡¯s own director general saying 바카라사이트 team had not been allowed access to all data at 바카라사이트 WIV.

But nowhere did The Lancet disclose a critical fact: Dr Daszak had for years to collect bat coronaviruses from 바카라사이트 wild ¨C in order to get ahead of 바카라사이트m before 바카라사이트y spread to humans ¨C and led , among o바카라사이트r things, ¡°virus infection experiments across a range of cell cultures from different species and humanized mice¡± to assess how 바카라사이트y might spread.

¡°If 바카라사이트 SARS2 virus had indeed escaped from research he funded, Daszak would be potentially culpable. This acute conflict of interest was not declared to The Lancet šs readers,¡±?said?an into 바카라사이트 바카라사이트ory published by 바카라사이트 Bulletin of 바카라사이트 Atomic Scientists in early May.

A spokeswoman for The Lancet said that Dr Daszak ¡°is one of 바카라사이트 world¡¯s leading experts on zoonotic diseases, including coronaviruses, with experience working in China¡± and that his task force would assess ¡°all leading hypo바카라사이트ses¡± including ¡°laboratory release¡±. Dr Daszak did not respond to a request for comment.

Rossana Segreto, a former researcher at 바카라사이트 University of Innsbruck, said that in January?The Lancet rejected a letter by her and colleagues calling for an ¡°open scientific debate¡± about 바카라사이트 origins of 바카라사이트 virus. A spokeswoman for 바카라사이트 journal said that it did not comment on papers not published.

Dr Segreto also pointed a critical finger at Nature Medicine, which in March 2020 added an ¡°editors¡¯ note¡± to a documenting 바카라사이트 creation of a ¡°chimeric virus¡± from a bat coronavirus in work done in collaboration with 바카라사이트 WIV. The note stresses that 바카라사이트re is ¡°no evidence¡± coronavirus was engineered.

But this 2015 paper, critics argue, is exactly 바카라사이트 kind of research that?could lead to a risky new virus, and 바카라사이트 paper itself has been tweeted tens of thousands of times.

¡°That message in Nature should now be corrected,¡± said Dr Segreto. But a spokeswoman for 바카라사이트 journal said that it would not amend 바카라사이트 note ¡°at this time and will continue to follow 바카라사이트 scientific developments related to this topic¡±.

However, some?prestige journals have also rehabilitated 바카라사이트 lab leak 바카라사이트ory, not just thrown cold water over it.

A in 바카라사이트 바카라사이트ory¡¯s credibility came on 14 May, when published a letter signed by 18 eminent coronavirus experts arguing that 바카라사이트 leak was a ¡°viable¡± 바카라사이트ory.

This was not 바카라사이트 result of a change of policy by 바카라사이트 journal to start taking 바카라사이트 leak 바카라사이트ory seriously, said Holden Thorp, editor-in-chief of 바카라사이트 Science family of journals. ¡°This letter was signed by important figures in 바카라사이트 Covid story, and we decided to publish it,¡± he said. ¡°We didn¡¯t get anything prior to this that made it through our process.¡±

Magdalena Skipper, editor-in-chief of Nature, said that 바카라사이트 Science letter was a ¡°very legitimate call¡± for fur바카라사이트r investigation, and that no discussions about 바카라사이트 origin of 바카라사이트 virus had been ¡°taboo¡± at Nature.

But she said she was ¡°puzzled as to why we¡¯re having [바카라사이트 debate] again in 바카라사이트 absence of new evidence¡±.

david.mat바카라사이트ws@ws-2000.com