Why we worry at night about gain-of-function research

Disease X is an unknown pathogen capable of causing a devastating pandemic. This term was coined by the World Health Organization in 2018 and was under discussion at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, last week.

Unfortunately, the announcement at the summit by WHO leader Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus that we need an international pandemic treaty to fight against Disease X is toothless when you consider the lack of real international cooperation in the past combined with the WHO’s track record of obfuscating the truth about emerging pathogens. Plus, some of the same scientists who have vowed to protect us continue to put us at risk of a Disease X by tinkering with dangerous viruses.