President Donald Trump is moving to curb gain-of-function research, a controversial area of biological science that involves enhancing the transmissibility or severity of pathogens. His executive order, signed Monday, May 5, outlines measures aimed at tightening federal oversight, halting U.S. funding for certain foreign labs and increasing public transparency.
The order states, “If left unrestricted, [gain-of-function’s] effects can include widespread mortality, an impaired public health system, disrupted American livelihoods, and diminished economic and national security.”
Tech mogul and Trump adviser, Elon Musk, reacted to the announcement on his social media platform, X. In a post, he said, “The real name for ‘gain of function’ is death maximization, That’s what Fauci was actually researching.”
How did COVID-19 play a role in Trump officials changing research policy?
According to the White House, the COVID-19 pandemic heightened concern over research conducted without sufficient safeguards, particularly in countries where U.S. oversight is limited. Research grants have also been approved for foreign laboratories, including some in China, despite questions about their biosafety standards.
The administration acknowledges that past federal funding, both in the U.S. and overseas, lacked adequate controls.
House Committee of Oversight and Government Reform Chairman James Comer reacted to the decision, saying, “I applaud President Trump for banning taxpayer-funded gain-of-function research government-wide. This administration is working to ensure the health and safety of all Americans, and this decisive action could prevent the next pandemic from spilling out of a lab.”
Multiple theories suggest that the recent coronavirus pandemic started in a lab in Wuhan, China, that was performing gain-of-function research.
“What it does is, there’s always a danger that in doing this research it might leak out just by accident even and cause a pandemic,” Jay Bhattacharya, director of the National Institutes of Health (NIH), said during the executive order signing.
In 2021, GOP leaders criticized Dr. Anthony Fauci, former director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, for giving U.S. grant money to the Wuhan Institute of Virology. As calls to investigate the origins of COVID-19 grew louder, so too did disagreements surrounding gain-of-function research. However, Dr. Fauci maintains that grant money was never used for gain-of-function research.
NIH previously gave grant money to EcoHealth Alliance, which then collaborated with other labs, like the Wuhan Institute, on research into bat coronaviruses.
In January 2025, EcoHealth and its former president were barred from all funding through the Department of Health and Human Services based on the Select Subcommittee on the Coronavirus Pandemic findings. The committee said EcoHealth violated the terms of the NIH grant and ignored government oversight requests.
Government agencies back ‘lab leak theory‘
The FBI, Department of Energy and CIA have all supported the idea that COVID-19 stemmed from a lab leak. The CIA supported the claim when Trump returned to the White House –– the other two made those assertions in 2023.
What does gain-of-function research mean?
The order says “dangerous gain-of-function research” is a scientific work modifying or altering pathogens or toxins to make them more harmful, harder to treat or more easily transmitted. Activities include reducing vaccine effectiveness, recreating extinct diseases and increasing a pathogen’s ability to spread.
However, supporters of gain-of-function research say it’s crucial in understanding and predicting how viruses may mutate, which can then be used to develop vaccines. Scientists in favor also say continuing this research helps track how viruses spread between animals and humans.
Key policy changes
According to the new executive order, key policy changes include:
- All federal funding for “dangerous gain-of-function research” in “countries of concern,” such as China, will be halted. This includes any research deemed a threat to public health or national security and lacking adequate oversight.
- Federal agencies must immediately suspend existing projects that fall under these definitions, pending new guidelines.
- A new policy framework will replace outdated 2024 guidance, strengthening independent oversight, enforcement, and transparency. It will define the scope of covered research and require routine reviews every four years.
- Synthetic DNA providers will face stricter procurement screening. A revised “Nucleic Acid Synthesis Screening Framework” will enforce safeguards against misuse in both federally and non-federally funded settings.
- A strategy to track and manage risky research outside federal funding channels will be developed. Gaps in legal authority will be addressed through a legislative proposal.
What does the future of research look like?
The White House said there will be a pause on gain-of-function research until a “safe, more enforceable and transparent policy governing such research can be developed and implemented.”
