post Share on Facebook It claims that the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation awarded $9.5 million to the University of Wisconsin-Madison to infect humans with H5N1 avian influenza.
Verdict: False
The claim is false and originated from an article originally published on June 17 by Natural News, a website known for spreading “misinformation.” A spokesperson for the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation denied the validity of the claim in an email to Check Your Fact.
Fact check:
The pharmaceutical company Moderna recently announced that it had received $176 million in federal funding to “develop an mRNA vaccine for avian influenza pandemic preparedness.” ForbesThe Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) provided funding to “subsidize the costs of late-stage clinical trials to begin in 2025.” Bloomberg report.
The Instagram video, which has over 200 likes at the time of writing, claims that the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation awarded the University of Wisconsin-Madison $9.5 million to help transmit H5N1 avian influenza to humans. The video is accompanied by a June 17 headline accusing the foundation of engaging in “bioterrorism.”
However, this claim is false. This headline was originally published in June 17th article It was published on the website “Natural News”. WikipediaFormerly known as “News Target,” the website is a “far-right, anti-vaccination conspiracy and fake news website known for promoting alternative medicine, pseudoscience, disinformation and far-right extremism.” Additionally, Institute for Strategic Dialogue In June 2020, the US released a report investigating the site, alleging it was spreading “false information.”
Similarly, 2009 Press Release According to a statement from the University of Wisconsin-Madison, the school received a $9.5 million grant from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation to “identify viral mutations that provide early warning of influenza viruses with the potential to cause a pandemic.” Over a five-year period, project leader virologist Yoshihiro Kawaoka and his team will “search for mutations in viral proteins that enable avian influenza viruses to bind to human receptors or replicate efficiently in human cells,” according to the statement.
The statement also noted that avian viruses “do not normally infect humans or other mammalian hosts. However, occasionally, mutations occur that enable avian viruses to adapt to human cells,” which can lead to pandemics. (Related: Claims that Alvin Bragg was arrested are satire)
In addition, “Check Your Fact” There is no reliable news coverage This video was posted to back up the claims made in the Instagram video, which is actually the exact opposite. PolitiFact The report said the allegations were false. Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation website.
A spokesperson for the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation denied the validity of the claim in an email to Check Your Fact.
“This allegation is false,” the spokesman said.
Check Your Fact has also reached out to the University of Wisconsin-Madison for comment and will update this article accordingly if and when they do.
