Category: Corona Virus

AUSTIN, Texas - The Austin Public Health (APH) COVID-19 Dashboard, which served as a first-of-its-kind navigationtool, is retiring. Thousands of staff hours were poured into this page to visually demonstrate the sheer numbers that representedloved ones, neighborhoods, and communities impacted by COVID-19. The data presented in this dashboard, which had millions of views during its run, informed and influenced everything from individual behaviors and emergency operational decisions to published research and policy making. At the height of Austin-Travis County's emergency response in January 2022, more than 22,000 cases were reported in just one week.

This is the end of an era for Austin Public Health and the community we serve. We launched the dashboard at the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic, and it has been invaluable to our work for the last four years, said AustinTravis County Health Authority Dr. Desmar Walkes. The dashboard highlighted zip codes and populations that called for additional outreach, it showed us the effectiveness of our immunization and prevention campaignsand it served as a stark reminder of those who were lost and the importance of our continued efforts to fight this virus.

Providers are no longer required to report individual cases of COVID-19 to public health, according to the Texas Department of State Health Services (DSHS). However, they should still notify public health in the event of a suspected or known outbreak. This is following the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) updated respiratory virus guidance to include influenza, COVID-19, and respiratory syncytial virus (RSV), citing fewer people are getting seriously sick, more have immunity from vaccines or prior infectionand there are better treatments available.

As part of returning to sustainable operations, APH will continue to respond to any reported outbreaks, provide vaccines to those who qualify and share updates on any new COVID-19 variants. APH's COVID-19 surveillance efforts will continue to incorporate various strategies, such as wastewater surveillance, COVID-19 death tracking and detecting outbreaks among at-risk communities, including congregate settings such as long-term care facilities, schoolsand childcare centers.

From data entry and case investigation to IT and communications, it was all hands on deck working 24/7 to ensure we were providing the best information that reflected the situation in our community in a timely manner, said Chief Epidemiologist Janet Pichette. Thank you to our leadership, city and county departments, hospital and community partners and staff who made this vital data tool happen.

The strategies to fight COVID-19 and other respiratory viruses remain the same:

Make sure youre up to date with the COVID-19 vaccine.

Follow proper hygiene practices, including washing your hands often and covering any coughs or sneezes.

Practice social distancing when in large groups, especially indoors.

Stay home if you feel sick.

These arent just numbers - the dashboard illustrated tragic loss as COVID-19, followed by its highly transmittable variants, ripped through our community surge after surge. It also shows just how successful prevention methods and getting vaccinated were in curbing the impact of the virus, said APH Director Adrienne Sturrup. The tools to fight this virus are widely available. We owe it to ourselves to take what weve learned from this pandemic to provide information to the community for a healthier Austin.

APH is working to archive the data from our dashboard. In the meantime, DSHS has combined the individual weekly flu, RSV and COVID-19 surveillance reports into one Texas Respiratory Virus Surveillance Report.

Vaccines are readily available through doctors offices, pharmacies and APHs Shots for Tots and Big Shots clinics.

Vaccine Providers

Visit Vaccines.gov (Vacunas.gov in Spanish) to find flu and COVID-19 vaccine providers near you.

Vaccine Events

APHs calendar of vaccine clinics throughout Austin-Travis County can be found here.

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Austin Public Health Archiving COVID-19 Dashboard Following Case Reporting Changes - AustinTexas.gov

What have you discovered about how COVID-19 uses proteins?

One way SARS-CoV-2 makes us sick is by using a strategy called host shutoff. This means that while the virus makes copies of itself, it also slows the production of vital components within our cells. As a result, our bodies take longer to respond to the infection.

When SARS-CoV-2 enters our cells, it disrupts the process of making proteins, which are essential for our cells to work correctly. A particular SARS-CoV-2 protein called Nsp1 has a crucial role in this process. It stops ribosomes, the machinery that makes proteins, from doing their job effectively. The virus is like a clever saboteur inside our cells, making sure its own needs are met while disrupting our cells ability to defend themselves.

We found that Nsp1 is good at blocking ribosomes from making new proteins, but also interferes with the production of new ribosomes. In effect, it shuts down the machinery output, and the ability to make the machinery itself a serious double hit.

It does this by blocking the maturation or processing of specialized RNA molecules needed to build ribosomes. This adds a new layer of complexity to our understanding of SARS-CoV-2's interference with the host cell.

How could this discovery impact treatment for those with COVID-19?

Building on our published research, it will be crucial to understand how Nsp1 works to stop different types of human cells, tissues and organs from making proteins when infected with different variants of SARS-CoV-2 and related coronaviruses.

Scientists have been working to find precision medicines that can counteract Nsp1 and help fight against the continually evolving SARS-CoV-2 virus. These drugs aim to help infected cells keep producing proteins and build a robust immune response when dealing with infection. Ongoing research on such drugs should now benefit from testing whether they can block Nsp1 from interfering with both the production and function of ribosomes, and this should help find more effective precision medicines.

How did you start and pursue this line of research?

This project started because of circumstances during the COVID lockdown. We wanted to help in the fight against the pandemic. However, since I couldn't physically work in the lab, we took the opportunity to analyze next-generation sequencing datasets computationally from home.

Looking at published RNA-sequencing datasets, we realized that cells infected with SARS-CoV-2, compared to uninfected cells, may have difficulty processing the RNA molecules needed to build ribosomes. Through this analysis, together with Dr. Mekhail, we developed hypotheses and designed the project.

I had the privilege of collaborating closely with the talented members of the Mekhail lab, Alexander Palazzos group from the department of biochemistry at Temerty Medicine, and Brian Raught and Razqallah Hakems labs at the Princess Margaret Cancer Centre. This work wouldn't have been possible without the collective efforts of our team and collaborators, and Im grateful for their contributions. My responsibilities included conducting numerous hands-on experiments and bioinformatics analyses, analyzing the results, and preparing the paper for peer review and publication.

What were the most challenging and rewarding aspects of this project?

The most challenging part was conducting research during a global pandemic, which presented many logistical hurdles, from disrupted lab routines to limitations on collecting and using samples infected with SARS-CoV-2.

On the other hand, the opportunity to contribute to our understanding of SARS-CoV-2 viral mechanisms and shed light on potential therapeutic targets was incredibly fulfilling. Seeing our research culminate in a published paper and knowing it could inform future strategies for combating coronaviruses is deeply gratifying.

What are your longer-term goals, as a scientist?

As an independent investigator in my future lab, I want to study how the complex processes of making ribosomes affect the body's natural defense against viruses. It's an area I find compelling and presents ample opportunities for further exploration. One approach Im particularly interested in is integrating RNA-sequencing with genetic CRISPR and small-molecule chemical screens, targeting distinct stages of ribosome biogenesis across diverse infection or infection-mimicking conditions. Such integrated approaches hold promise for uncovering novel mechanisms underlying the regulation of antiviral responses and should help us find innovative and impactful ways to fight viral infections.

This research was supported by the Canadian Institutes of Health Research.

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Researchers discover COVID-19 virus breaks protein production line - Temerty Faculty of Medicine

Gilead Sciences has announced that the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) has recommended Veklury (remdesivir) to treat COVID-19 in vulnerable adults and children.

The new final draft guidance marks Veklury as the first antiviral to be recommended by NICE to treat eligible children, including those with a high risk of serious illness from COVID-19.

COVID-19 is an infectious disease caused by the SARS-CoV-2 virus that continues to cause thousands of hospital admissions in England.

Certain groups of people are vulnerable to COVID-19 as they are at higher risk of getting seriously ill, including those with certain types of cancer, autoimmune or inflammatory conditions and severe kidney or liver disease.

NICE has recommended Veklury for hospitalised adults and children weighing at least 40kg who are at high risk of serious illness.

Within its marketing authorisation, Veklury is also recommended to treat COVID-19 in children at least four weeks of age, weighing at least 3kg, who are in hospital with pneumonia and require supplemental oxygen.

Julian Cole, country medical director, Gilead UK and Ireland, said: We welcome [the] news, which provides clinicians continuity and the option for sustained use of remdesivir on the NHS.

As COVID-19 continues to present a significant challenge in hospital settings the recommendation provides an additional treatment option that may benefit many vulnerable patients, including young, immunocompromised children, said professor Andrew Ustianowski, consultant physician, infectious diseases and tropical medicine, North Manchester General Hospital UK.

In March, Gilead shared positive new data from three real-world retrospective studies, which analysed 52,006 patients data from HealthVerity and further supported the use of its COVID-19 treatment for patients hospitalised with the virus.

It revealed that the treatment was associated with a 10% reduced risk of long COVID in all analysed age groups, as well as an overall 25% reduction in mortality risk and improved outcomes.

Currently approved in more than 50 countries, Veklury works to stop the SARS-CoV-2 virus from replicating and spreading in the body.

In September 2023, Veklury was recommended by the European Medicines Agencys human medicine committee to treat patients with mild-to-severe hepatic impairment, an alcohol-related liver disease.

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Gileads Veklury receives NICE recommendation to treat COVID-19 in vulnerable adults and children - PMLiVE

Dr. Demetre Daskalakis breaks down what is involved in prescribing PrEP. One, HIV testing should be done to make sure they dont have HIV and if they do, it is important to prescribe treatment. Two, test for other sexually transmitted infections and make sure they are up to date with vaccines. Three, provide baseline test. Once you have all that information, you can prescribe PrEP. As a clinician, you should come up with a follow up plan as well. This video is a joint production of KFF's Greater Than HIV and CDC's Let's Stop HIV Together.

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What's involved in prescribing PrEP? | Covid-19 | news-journal.com - Longview News-Journal

Feds buried partnership between NIH, Wuhan to 'engineer' coronavirus, Rand Paul says

by JACKSON WALKER | The National Desk

Dr. Anthony Fauci, Director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases at the National Institutes of Health (NIH), speaks during a ceremony awarding the Nobel Prize medal and prize to Harvey J. Alter, Laureate in Physiology or Medicine, at NIH in Bethesda, Md., Tuesday, Dec. 8, 2020. (AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin)

WASHINGTON (TND)

Sen. Rand Paul, R-Ky., on Tuesday announced new findings in his research on COVID-19 which he feels may prove Americans were lied to about the disease.

The senator has been aggressively digging into the origins of COVID-19 ever since the pandemic. Earlier this month, he launched a bipartisan investigation to uncover the origins of the disease with Sen. Gary Peters, D-Mich.

Dr. Anthony Faucis National Institutes of Health lab, the senator said via X Tuesday, partnered with Wuhan researchers who were engineering a coronavirus since as early as 2018. At least 15 federal agencies allegedly knew of the Wuhan researchers' project and said nothing despite being pressed by several major politicians.

The project, stemming from a grant proposal, proposed inserting a furin cleavage site into a coronavirus to create a novel virus similar to COVID-19, according to an op-ed written by Sen. Paul Tuesday.

Reacting to the news was Rep. Matt Rosendale, R-Mont., who exclaimed Fauci should be in prison! New Hampshire gubernatorial candidate Chuck Morse added businesses were shut down, students were deprived of their classrooms, and hardworking Americans lost their jobs over the course of the pandemic.

We deserve honest answers, Morse continued.

Fauci has consistently refuted claims he lied about NIH being linked to such research, telling Sen. Paul during a July 2021 hearing the lawmaker does "not know what" he is "talking about."

Sen. Paul's findings are the latest to arise from closer examinations of the pandemic. Watchdog group Open the Books told The National Desk (TND) last month it uncovered pharmaceutical companies had paid hundreds of millions in third-party royalties to government scientists during the pandemic.

On Tuesday, the U.S. Department of Justice seized over $1.4 billion of COVID relief funds which were stolen during the last three years. At least 3,500 defendants received federal crime charges, which totaled more than $2 billion.

TND reached out to NIH for comment, but did not immediately receive a response. This story will be updated if a response is received.

Follow Jackson Walker on X at @_jlwalker_ for the latest trending national news. Have a news tip? Send it to jacwalker@sbgtv.com.

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Feds buried partnership between NIH, Wuhan to 'engineer' coronavirus, Rand Paul says - News3LV

(WKBN) The COVID-19 Fraud Enforcement Task Force released its 2024 report Tuesday.

Since its inception in 2021, the task force has charged 3,500 people for losses of over $2 billion.

The task force investigations have led to over $100 million in settlements and judgments and over $1.4 billion seized or forfeited.

The fraud is domestic and foreign. The task force said some of the fraud is committed overseas and that strike forces have been assigned to investigate those complex and harmful cases.

Fraud has occurred with U.S. unemployment benefits, business loans and grants, as well as other COVID-19 relief programs.

Our work is not over. We will continue our efforts to investigate and prosecute pandemic relief fraud and to recover the assets that have been stolen from American taxpayers., said Attorney General Merrick Garland.

Garland is asking for the statute of limitations to be extended and for funding to be appropriated to continue investigations and prosecutions.

The COVID-19 Fraud Enforcement Task Force was set up by Garland through the U.S. Department of Justice.

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Report: 3,500 charged, $2 billion in COVID-19 fraud - WKBN.com

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How vast was the Great COVID Cover-up?Well, my investigation has recently discovered government officials from 15 federal agencies knew in 2018 that the Wuhan Institute of Virology was trying to create a coronavirus like COVID-19.

These officials knew that the Chinese lab was proposing to create a COVID 19-like virus and not one of these officials revealed this scheme to the public.In fact, 15 agencies with knowledge of this project have continuously refused to release any information concerning this alarming and dangerous research.

Government officials representing at least 15 federal agencies were briefed on a project proposed by Peter Daszaks EcoHealth Alliance and the Wuhan Institute of Virology.

Dr. Anthony Fauci adjusts his face mask during a Senate hearing on the federal response to the coronavirus on Capitol Hill, March 18, 2021. (Susan Walsh-Pool/Getty Images)

This project, the DEFUSE project, proposed to insert a furin cleavage site into a coronavirus to create a novel chimeric virus that would have been shockingly similar to the COVID-19 virus.

THIS WILL BE THE END TO FAUCI'S NIH AS WE KNOW IT

For years, I have been fighting to obtain records from dozens of federal agencies relating to the origins of COVID-19 and the DEFUSE project. Under duress, the administration finally released documents that show that the DEFUSE project was pitched to at least 15 agencies in January 2018.

What does this mean?

It means that at least 15 federal agencies knew from the beginning of the pandemic that EcoHealth Alliance and the Wuhan Institute of Virology were seeking federal funding in 2018 to create a virus genetically very similar if not identical to COVID-19.

RAND PAUL DEMANDS FAUCI, NIH SCIENTISTS DISCLOSE PHARMACEUTICAL ROYALTIES

Disturbingly, not one of these 15 agencies spoke up to warn us that the Wuhan Institute of Virology had been pitching this research. Not one of these agencies warned anyone that this Chinese lab had already put together plans to create such a virus.

Peter Daszak concealed this proposal. University of North Carolina scientist Ralph Baric, a named collaborator on the DEFUSE project, failed to reveal that the Wuhan Institute of Virology had already proposed to create a virus similar to COVID-19.

And now we know that 15 agencies heard the proposal and when each agency discovered that COVID-19 was strangely similar to DEFUSEs proposed virus creation, not one agency head stepped forward to warn the public that the virus might be man-made and therefore already adapted to transmit freely among humans.

THE ARROGANCE OF ANTHONY FAUCI

Not surprising to some of us, Dr. Anthony Faucis National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID) was not only briefed on Wuhans desire to create this virus, NIAID was actually listed as a participant in the initial DEFUSE pitch. Faucis Rocky Mountain Lab was named as a partner alongside the Wuhan Institute of Virology in the proposal.

These documents also reveal that a scientist whose lab has received millions of dollars from EcoHealth was also part of the original plan to create these chimeric coronaviruses. This researcher, Ian Lipkin, also later became one of the authors of "Proximal Origins," a journal paper commissioned by Fauci and National Institutes of Health head Francis Collins to throw shade on anyone arguing that the virus might have come from the lab. Yet, Ian Lipkin never revealed to the public the DEFUSE proposal.

Did NIAID warn us? Did Anthony Fauci warn us? No! All lips remained sealed.

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Millions of people died from COVID-19. We now know that over 15 government agencies, as well as the investigators Peter Daszak, Ralph Baric, Ian Lipkin and scientists at NIAIDs Rocky Mountain Lab, all knew of the Wuhan Institute of Virologys desire to create a coronavirus with a furin cleavage site, a virus pre-adapted for human transmission.

And no one spoke up. We only know of this DEFUSE proposal because a whistleblower, one brave Marine, Lt. Col. Joseph Murphy, came forward with the truth.

Likely, hundreds of people in the government knew of this proposal to create a COVID-19-like virus and virtually every one of these people chose to keep quiet, to obscure, and ultimately to conceal information that might have saved lives by letting the world know this was no sleepy animal virus with poor transmission.

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No, all evidence suggests COVID-19 was a laboratory-enhanced virus purposefully adapted for human transmission.

Shame on all those who covered up the DEFUSE project! Of course, they all should be punished but likely wont. At the very least, though, the perpetrators should be made to admit the truth and Congress should finally put in place sufficient oversight to make sure dangerous gain of function experiments are sufficiently vetted and, if necessary, prevented.

CLICK HERE TO READ MORE FROM SEN. RAND PAUL

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The Great COVID Cover-up: Shocking truth about Wuhan and 15 federal agencies - Fox News

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New research from the University of Georgia suggests that something as simple as a cup of tea can help in the fight against COVID-19.

Tea has been renowned globally for its many health benefits, and Malak Esseili, a virologist with the University of Georgia Center for Food Safety in the College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences, wanted to know if it may also affect SARS-CoV-2.

When the first rumblings of the pandemic began, no one had to convince Esseili of the seriousness of the matter because of her background studying viruses. She immediately began looking for ways to help protect herself and her family. She needed something that was easily accessible and palatable, so she turned to the humble tea leaf. After a quick trip to her local grocery store, she was ready to begin her research.

"Having something that is accessible, easily prepared, and suitable for all the family would be ideal," said Esseili, who was also inspired by her tea-loving kids.

Her team's findings, published in the journal Food and Environmental Virology, demonstrate how certain teas inactivate SARS-CoV-2 in salivain some cases by up to 99.9%. This is important because the virus infects and replicates inside the oral cavity, passing through the oropharynx before reaching the lungs.

"Inactivating SARS-CoV-2 in the mouth and the throat matters because that potentially reduces the introduction of the virus to the lower respiratory system," Esseili said.

Esseili and then-graduate student Julianna Morris, who graduated with her master's degree in food science in 2023, studied 24 different types of commercially available teas, some of which claim to aid in respiratory health. Of those, they found five that significantly reduced the virus in saliva: raspberry zinger, eucalyptus mint, mint medley, green tea and black tea, with black tea showing the greatest reduction. All testing was done in the laboratory in simulated conditions.

The team tested the efficacy of tea both as a drink and as a gargle to provide an option for those do not want to drink tea but want a highly concentrated rinse that would provide the same benefits as drinking a cup of tea.

Researchers prepared a drinkable infusion concentration using one tea bag per cup steeped for 10 minutes, with no additions such as milk or sugar. All five teas reduced the virus by at least 96% within 10 seconds in the mouth. Black tea was the most effective, reducing the virus by 99.9%. When tested as a gargle, they brewed the tea at four times the concentration of the drinkable infusion, finding that all five varieties of tea reduced the virus by 99.9% within 10 seconds when gargled.

Clinical trials are needed to understand better what effect these results may have on a patient who is ill with COVID-19, Esseili said, stressing that tea is not a replacement for medical care. Still, the initial results are both promising and exciting for those looking to supplement medical care.

"At this stage, we are not suggesting tea as a stand-alone intervention against SARS-CoV-2, because the virus also replicates in the nose and may have already reached the lung by the time a person tests positive," Esseili said. "But tea can be an additional layer of intervention that the patients and their families can easily adopt on a routine basis."

More information: Julianna N. Morris et al, Screening Commercial Tea for Rapid Inactivation of Infectious SARS-CoV-2 in Saliva, Food and Environmental Virology (2024). DOI: 10.1007/s12560-023-09581-0

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Can a cup of tea keep COVID away? Study demonstrates that certain teas inactivate SARS-CoV-2 in saliva - Medical Xpress

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The Multi-faceted Effects of COVID-19 on Female Reproductive Health: An Updated Narrative Review - Cureus

Sen. Rand Paul (R-KY) said that 15 federal agencies were aware of a proposed project from 2018 that would have allowed virus research organization EcoHealth Alliance to genetically engineer a virus similar to SARS-CoV-2, sparking concerns about the extent to which the Trump administration should have been aware of the risks of research into dangerous viruses before the start of the COVID pandemic.

The project ultimately was not funded, but EcoHealth Alliance-funded research in Wuhan, China, has been at the center of speculation on the part of congressional investigators about the origins of the coronavirus.

At least 15 federal agencies knew from the beginning of the pandemic that EcoHealth Alliance and the Wuhan Institute of Virology were seeking federal funding in 2018 to create a virus genetically very similar if not identical to COVID-19, Paul said on Tuesday. Disturbingly, not one of these 15 agencies spoke up to warn us that the Wuhan Institute of Virology had been pitching this research.

Documents revealed by the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee, of which Paul is the top Republican member, indicate that several agencies, including the National Institutes of Health, the U.S. Agency for International Development, and the Department of Homeland Security, were aware of EcoHealths hope to create in China what Paul calls a novel chimeric virus with pandemic potential.

EcoHealth, a research nonprofit organization with the goal of preventing pandemics, has played a central role in the congressional investigation into the origins of COVID because of the grant funding the organization receives from the National Institutes of Health and other government agencies.

Since 2021, Paul has drawn attention to a 2018 grant proposal from EcoHealth to the Department of Defense under the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency, or DARPA. The research proposal, referred to as the DEFUSE project, would have been conducted at the Wuhan Institute of Virology and the University of North Carolina Chapel Hill.

House Republicans recently uncovered information indicating that EcoHealth President Peter Daszak may have misled DARPA as to how much of the research would have been done in the United States rather than China in order to ensure that the DOD was comfortable with [the] team.

If the project had been funded by DARPA, the research would have involved manipulation of the spike proteins on various viruses related to SARS-CoV, which would have subsequently been injected into humanized mice to assess [the modified viruses] capability to cause SARS-like disease.

Paul said that the DEFUSE project would have specifically inserted a furin cleavage site onto a coronavirus, a key feature of SARS-CoV-2 that makes it easily transmissible among humans.

Paul announced first in an opinion piece on Tuesday that he had received documentation from the Biden administration that key agencies in public health and national security were made aware of the DEFUSE project at an event hosted by DARPA before the outbreak of the pandemic.

Because the DEFUSE project was submitted to the DARPA under the PREventing EMerging Pathogenic Threats, or PREEMPT, program, EcoHealth and the WIV were invited to participate in the so-called PREEMPT Proposers Day.

Under duress, the administration finally released documents that show that the DEFUSE project was pitched to at least 15 agencies in January 2018, Paul said.

According to Paul, this means that these agencies knew from the beginning of the pandemic about the project, including the NIH and the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases under the leadership of then-Director Anthony Fauci.

Did NIAID warn us? Did Anthony Fauci warn us? No! All lips remained sealed, Paul wrote in his op-ed.

Daszak participated in a closed-door transcribed interview session with the House Oversight and Energy and Commerce committees in November.

Discrepancies between Daszaks testimony and documents about the DEFUSE project uncovered via Freedom of Information Act requests prompted the committees to schedule a public hearing to question Daszak about the project.

Daszak is slated to appear for public testimony on May 1.

When asked about Pauls revelation, a spokesperson for the House Select Subcommittee on the Coronavirus Pandemic told the Washington Examiner that members will be likely asking Daszak about the degree of federal knowledge about the DEFUSE project outside of DARPA.

Dr. Peter Daszak has many questions to answer when he appears before the Select Subcommittee in May, said the subcommittee spokesperson. The American people deserve a full transparent investigation into the relationship between EcoHealth Alliance and the Wuhan Institute of Virology, including any funding federal agencies reviewed and granted prior to the start of the COVID-19 pandemic.

A spokesperson for EcoHealth said in a statement that Pauls opinion piece is full of several unfounded and false claims.

EcoHealth Alliance did submit a proposal for a project named DEFUSE to DARPA for funding, but the agency declined to select the project for support and the proposed research was never done, the spokesperson said in a statement.

The spokesperson maintained that EcoHealth did not pursue funding from any other federal agency for the DEFUSE project.

In response to a different opinion piece from Paul published in February related to dangerous pathogen research, the EcoHealth spokesperson previously told the Washington Examiner that the research conducted at the WIV had nothing to do with SARS-CoV-2.

The fact is that the bat coronavirus research conducted by EcoHealth Alliance and the Wuhan Institute of Virology could not have started the COVID-19 pandemic, the spokesperson said.

The spokesperson also said that if the DEFUSE project had been approved by DARPA, it would have been carefully monitored by the DOD.

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Fifteen agencies were aware of controversial EcoHealth coronavirus research, Rand Paul says - Washington Examiner