Virologist Simon Wain-Hobson on why the University of Wisconsin should not support ePPP research

Virologist Simon Wain-Hobson describes why the University of Wisconsin-Madison should not support research that enhances potential pandemic pathogens (ePPP research). In 2011, University of Wisconsin-Madison virologist Dr. Yoshihiro Kawaoka performed research that created genetically engineered avian influenza viruses that, if they were to escape his lab, could cause a pandemic far more devastating than COVID-19. Dr. Simon Wain-Hobson, is a world renowned virologist who has published more than 230 papers on virology and cancer. Wain-Hobson and his colleagues were the first to report the genetic blueprint of the AIDS virus. (Nature 1984;312(5996):757-60; Nature 1985;313(6005):743; Cell 1985 Jan;40(1):9-17). Wain-Hobson is a long-time vocal critic of ePPP research--such as that performed in the Kawaoka lab. On January 10, 2024 the Wisconsin State Assembly Committee on Colleges and Universities will hold a public hearing on Assembly Bill 413 (AB 413). AB 413 would prohibit University of Wisconsin-Madison scientists from conducting “gain-of-function“ research that enhances potential pandemic pathogens (ePPP research). Learn more about AB 413: ABOUT BIOSAFETY NOW Biosafety Now is a US-based non-profit organization working for a future where scientific research on pathogens supports human life without also threatening it and public trust in science is restored. Learn more at