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What is a "gain of function" experiment?

• MattJ100 4y ago
  This 2015 article (and its more recent discussions due to relevance) provides background on the topic and its controversial nature: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=28582500 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=28582500
• solarengineer 4y ago
  https://usrtk.org/biohazards/origin-of-sars-cov-2-gain-of-function-readings/ https://usrtk.org/biohazards/origin-of-sars-cov-2-gain-of-fu... https://thebulletin.org/2021/08/covid-19-lab-leak-theory-gain-of-function-is-a-hot-topic-but-a-bad-explanation/ https://thebulletin.org/2021/08/covid-19-lab-leak-theory-gai...
• ralusek 4y ago
  Selective breeding/reproduction/engineering combined with evolutionary pressure in order to guide a genetic lineage in a particular direction. In the example of disease, say you wanted to make a human virus be able to infect mice. You keep releasing a human rhinovirus into a cage with "humanized mice" (mice genetically altered to have specific receptors in common with humans). There is strong evolutionary pressure in this environment for the virus to evolve to infect these mice. A viral variant eventually catches on and begins infecting the humanized mice. Then you take that viral strain and start exposing normal mice. Now there is an evolutionary pressure for the virus to be able to infect those mice. This virus will have essentially "gained that function."