How do we keep labs that handle dangerous pathogens safe and leak-free? Dig into the ongoing debate over virology research.

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Since the 1970s, researchers have engineered superbugs. While this research could help us prepare for future outbreaks, the stakes of this work are extremely high: if even one dangerous virus escaped a lab, it could cause a global pandemic. So, what can we do to minimize risk? And is the knowledge gained even worth the risk in the first place? Dig into the ongoing debate over virology research.

Directed by Kevin Herrmann, AIM Creative Studios.

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View full lesson: https://ed.ted.com/lessons/what-happens-if-an-engineered-virus-escapes-the-lab
Dig deeper with additional resources: https://ed.ted.com/lessons/what-happens-if-an-engineered-virus-escapes-the-lab#digdeeper

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While the origin of the new Coronavirus is not yet known, we do know where new viruses normally come from. Hint: Darwin’s theory of evolution is full of clues!

In this animation you will get a crash course in virology. You’ll learn how viruses differ from other microbes, why most viruses can only infect one type of host organism, and how viruses evolve to infect new hosts.

For more information on evolution, visit https://www.statedclearly.com/

For more information on the idea that this virus may have come from a lab, see our article here: https://www.statedclearly.com/articles/did-the-new-coronavirus-came-from-a-lab/

For an excellent and accurate Q&A about the coronavirus, including things about how it is treated and how to stay safe, see this video by Dr. Ines Dawson. It’s long but don’t worry, in the video description she has a table of contents. Click the question you care about and it will jump right to that spot in the video! https://youtu.be/oA8XYSftmtQ

Further Reading:
Overview of how new viruses evolve during spillover events
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2546865/

SARS coronavirus seems to have gone from bats to civets to people https://www.who.int/ith/diseases/sars/en/

RNA recombination as a source of genetic novelty in coronaviruses: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC241489/pdf/jvirol00041-0423.pdf

How recombination and reassortment work:
https://www.nature.com/articles/nrmicro2614

Recombination in single stranded RNA viruses
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3324781/

The evolution of SARS and a prediction that new coronaviruses will evolve in the future
https://jvi.asm.org/content/84/7/3134

How coronaviruses enter cells via binding and endocytosis: https://jvi.asm.org/content/92/3/e01933-17
https://www.nature.com/articles/cr200815

How we stopped the SARS coronavirus
https://www.cdc.gov/about/history/sars/timeline.htm

Pangolins as a potential intermediate host
https://www.nature.com/articles/d41586-020-00364-2

Corrections:
In the animation I call the virus COVID-19, but this is technically incorrect. COVID-19 is the name of the disease it causes. The virus itself is called SARS CoV 2. Thanks to YouTube user “Charles Starbuck” for pointing out the error.
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