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A new study by researchers at Boston University has got the scientific community buzzing but not all the Press
is good ethical debates have arisen and everyone has an opinion about whether the study was a
mistake or if it was justified in today's video we'll be doing a deep dive and breaking it all
down. In the past two years, the COVID-19 pandemic has in some way impacted the lives of everyone
here on planet Earth at least but something you may not be as familiar with is SARS cov2
the virus that causes the disease that is COVID-19. SARS-CoV-2 stands for severe acute respiratory
syndrome coronavirus 2. It is the second one because we experience the first SARS outbreak
in 2003. Both are similar in many ways however the difference between the two lies in slight nuances
in their structure. Firstly, let's talk about what a virus is a virus is a non-living infectious agent
that is only able to replicate within a host organism depending on the type of virus it may
have a membrane layer known as an envelope variant length and have a single or double-stranded DNA
or RNA genome enclosed around a protein shell known as a capsid. Viruses typically replicate
a number by physically attaching to a host cell and injecting its viral genome into the
host from there the virus is able to hijack the host cell's machinery and produce its own viral
proteins which will eventually allow it to create thousands if not millions of new virus particles
that can infect more and more host cells now what is a coronavirus specifically the word Corona is
derived from a Latin word meaning Crown because the virus is surrounded by a crown-like structure
which you will later learn are the spike proteins which project from the surface of the virus.
The SARS-CoV-2 virus is an envelope single-stranded RNA virus and is less than 0.1 micrometers in
size meaning that it is impossible to see with the naked eye, only with an electron microscope.
the SARS cov2 virus is an enveloped virus meaning that on its outermost surface it
is surrounded by a lipid bilayer a double layer of fat which helps it to survive for longer and
better infect other cells throughout the surface of the viral envelope there are projections called
Spike glycoproteins which help the virus enter host cells the spike proteins play
an important role in facilitating viral entry because it helps the virus to bind to The ace2
receptors which provide it with a Gateway into your body ace2 stands for Angiotensin
converting enzyme 2. these receptors are on the outside of most human throat and lung cells
take the analogy of a locking key H2 receptors are like the locks to the door which is your body the
spike proteins are the keys which will unlock the door in order to gain access to your body
just like how you can open a lock without a key the SARS cov2 virus won't be able to enter your
body without the spike proteins binding to the H2 receptors now that you know a little bit about the
components of the virus let's talk about what was done to it recently you may have heard about a new
piece of covid-19 research that has hit the news this news is all centered around research titled
the roller spike in the pathogenic and antigenic behavior of SARS cov2 ba1 Omicron this is a
preprint article that was released in October of 2022 based on Research done at Boston University
as you may be familiar with compared to the original virus the Omicron variant is known to
spread more easily while causing less severe illness prior research has shown that it is
mutations in the spike protein of the virus that is responsible for the creation of the armicron
variant it is for this reason that researchers want to know what role the spike protein had
in causing covid-19 infection and so in this experiment they created a chameric virus in
which they took the original SARS cov2 virus and gave it the same Spike protein that is typically
found in Omicron strings just like how you can mix and match tops and bottoms for a new stylish look
you can combine different components of a virus to create a new virus this new combination is known
as a chimeric virus or a chimera and will display different attributes compared to its parts that
is those differences may lead to good or bad from here they infected mice with one of the
following the original Stars cov2 virus the SARS Kobe 2 Omicron variant or a chimeric virus with
the original SARS Kobe 2 backbone combined with the Omicron Spike protein what did this research
find well it found that while all mice infected with just the Omicron variant survive 100 of the
mice affected with the original virus that as for the original virus with the Omicron Spike protein
80 of the mice infected with this chimeric virus also died from here the researchers concluded that
mutations in the viruses Spike protein impacts the ability of the virus to infect and avoid
neutralization while the backbone or the original genetic structure of the virus is more related to
the severity of the infection now the big question why is this research being so heavily debated
in the news it all comes down to whether or not this research constitutes gain and
function research gain of function research is considered to be when genes which create
the proteins in our body are changed to improve the function of an organism and make it stronger
in the context of viruses there's only creating a strain of the virus that is potentially more
transmissible or can cause more severe infection on one hand gain a function research can help
create or improve existing vaccines or treatments to a virus especially when a virus may start to
become resistant to a certain kind of treatment on the other hand gain of function research can cause
public outcry when it happens there's a delicate nature of the research while viruses are usually
handled safely and carefully if a virus were to escape from a lab setting it could potentially
have an impact on the general public in a time where politicians and scientists are debating over
the origins of the covid-19 virus in a function research can be a particularly difficult line to
walk as for This research specifically is it considered gain of function research on one
hand yes the scientists had created chameric virus that seems to be 80 more lethal than the
Omicron variant in that sense it can definitely be considered gain a function research however as the
researchers at Boston University argue may also not begin a function research while the chimeric
strain was 80 lethal it was still less lethal than the original virus which was 100 lethal
in their studies although it was more lethal than the currently circulating Omicron variant it may
not be considered a unit function compared to the original SARS cov2 virus in this regard it is also
important to consider the different stakeholders that are at play here this could potentially be a
case of media sensationalism where media will legitimately choose topics and word them in
a way they know will generate more views and discussion given how prominent the discussion
of the covid-19 origins have been over the last couple years this is definitely a topic that can
generate a lot of discussion this could also be poor communication on Boston University's Parts
who did not see the need to inform organizations outside of the University about what they set
out to research this will be touched upon later in the video finally it comes down to public response
this is a discussion for a reason and many people have their opinions based on what they have read
as the public we have a responsibility to do our own research read from a variety of sources and
to think critically the fact that researchers engineered a new SARS coronavirus 2 variants
is new but controversial research reaches back years decades and even centuries from 1957 to
1964 the CIA launched a research project called MK Ultra on behavioral modification and the
effects of drugs and psychological treatments on the Mind using unconsenting patients they
tested the limits of the human brain using drugs such as LSD methods such as sensory deprivation
and electroshock therapy at the McGill Allen Memorial Institute a former psychiatric hospital
many of the records were destroyed but it was clear from recovered documents and hearings of
former CIA employees that's unethical research was conducted the idea of ethics and research
probably started with Francis Bacon in 1620 in his book The novum organum a philosophical book
that argues that scientific research conducted should help Humanity fast forward to today we
have implemented guidelines such as the Nuremberg code stating that the volunteer consent of the
human subject is absolutely essential and the Declaration of Helsinki that defined the rules
for non-therapeutic research and research combined with clinical care to prevent
controversial unethical research according to the World Health Organization research ethics
govern the standards of conduct for scientific researchers it is important to adhere to ethical
principles in order to protect the dignity rights and Welfare of research participants in other
words research ethics are guidelines and Norms that determine whether certain research conduct
is acceptable or unacceptable this study was approved through Boston University's biosafety
review process and by the Boston Public Health commission the experiment was done in a biosafety
level 4 lab a lab of the highest safety levels possible in this type of lab researchers wear
an air-spired full-body positive pressure suits and are located in a totally isolated Zone where
the air is constantly cleaned with help of filters the study was funded by Boston University and the
tools that the researchers used were indirectly funded by the National Institute of allergy and
infectious diseases or the niaid but the niaid was not informed of the specific study on the
other hand the university said that there was no obligation to report funding streams for research
Tools in other words they had no obligation to let the niaid know about this so this gray area
of research brings us back to the importance of ethics and research why is it important for us
to have ethics in research ethical Norms firstly promotes the purposes and goals of research it
promotes truth seeking finding new knowledge and avoiding errors ethical Norms also promote values
that are essential to collaborative work we want to promote collaboration in an ethical way so it
is important to give researchers credit for their work and not plagiarize next ethical
Norms promotes the accountability of researchers to the public the there are policies that focus
on Research misconduct conflicts of interest and policies that protect human and animal
research subjects moreover by having ethics we promote the research itself and gain public
support and funding if a research project has integrity and is trustworthy then individuals
and associations are more likely to fund the project in the case of the SARS coronavirus II
Chimera study the research was funded by Boston University but also the niaid the niaid funds
were used for the research tools of the study but they were not notified of this before the
study was released so public support from the niaid in the future may change finally ethics
and research promotes social responsibility human rights public health and safety and
more it is important to uphold these values as a researcher who falsifies information or
fails to follow ethics can harm the participants of the study or even the general public so this
brings us to the question should scientists have engineered this virus the answer to this
question is not black or white especially for a modern problem as Publications on this topic are
constantly being updated when and considering this question we also need to remember to take
what we read on the news and see on social media with a grain of salt we should consider all the
perspectives on whether this type of research should be continued and whether the risks and
benefits outweigh the harms only then we can formulate a personal answer informed by what
we know about the subject so we would like to turn this question back to you should scientists have
engineered this virus there's no need to answer a question like this right away feel free to
search the web check our resources talk to your friends and see if you can find an answer that
satisfies you thank you for watching this video remember to wear a mask in public and stay safe