House Republicans announced an investigation on Friday into gain-of-function research at the University of Wisconsin-Madison that they said could be “dangerous.”

The letter was sent by Select Subcommittee on the Coronavirus Pandemic Chairman Brad Wenstrup (R-OH) to UW Chancellor Jennifer Mnookin requesting information on the university’s gain-of-function research and any information on if the university had worked with the Wuhan Institute of Virology or on any coronavirus projects. 

The letter pointed to previous problems identified with gain-of-function research at the university, but the university has said that the controversial research is “needed and highly regulated.” 

Wenstrup said that he disagreed with the university’s assertion that there was enough regulation on gain-of-function research, saying that previous use of gain-of-function research at the university proved otherwise. 

“UW has already shown it has the capabilities to modify pathogens and make them more dangerous. In 2011, Dr. Yoshihiro Kawaoka revealed to the world that he had modified the deadly avian H5N1 influenza virus so it could spread between ferrets. This experiment enabled the bird virus to spread more easily among mammals, particularly ferrets which most closely mimic human response to the flu. The H5N1 virus is considered a ‘potential pandemic pathogen,’ which through modification or handling could cause another global pandemic,” Wenstrup wrote. 

The letter also referenced several instances where gain-of-function research was being conducted at the university and scientists working on the projects ended up in quarantine. In one instance, a researcher pricked their finger with a needle that had engineered high pathogenic avian influenza on it and had to have their family stay at a hotel while quarantining at home. 

In response to these reports, some Republican lawmakers in the state have moved to ban gain-of-function research. Rep. Elijah Behnke, Rep. Ty Bodden, and Sen. André Jacque are working on a bill that would ban “institutions of higher education from conducting gain of function research on potentially pandemic pathogens, requiring reporting of the intention to conduct research on potentially pandemic pathogens, and providing a penalty.”

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The university has pushed back on the notion that the research is problematic, saying that it instead important for the public’s safety.

“The ability to safely study harmful viruses, bacteria and other pathogens is critically important for protecting public health and the food supply,” UW spokeswoman Kelly Tyrrell told Wisconsin Health News. “UW-Madison is committed to ensuring that its researchers who work with high-risk pathogens have safe and secure laboratories and receive training and certification to ensure their investigations are conducted safely.”

Several federal government agencies believe that COVID likely escaped from a lab in China, potentially as they were conducting gain-of-function research on the coronavirus. 

A federal judge blocked a Tennessee district attorney from enforcing the state’s law shielding children from sexually explicit performances ahead of a “Pride” event after he was sued by the American Civil Liberties Union. 

The judge’s ruling comes after the ACLU filed a lawsuit this week against Blount County DA Ryan Desmond, who sent a letter to Blount County Pride saying that any explicit performances in front of children would not be allowed at a “Pride” event on September 2 just south of Knoxville. Video has emerged from “Pride” events across the country of explicit drag performances with children present and looking on. 

“It is certainly possible that the event in question will not violate any of the criminal statutes,” Desmond said. “However if sufficient evidence is presented to this office that these referenced criminal statutes have been violated, our office will ethically and justly prosecute these cases in the interest of justice.”

Desmond had a temporary restraining order placed on him by U.S. District Judge Ronnie Greer meaning that he is blocked from enforcing Tennessee’s Adult Entertainment Act. Also part of the suit was Flamy Grant, who has been portrayed in the media as a “Christian” drag performer. 

The law has previously been blocked before by a federal judge in Memphis, but could be enforced outside of Shelby County. In late June, U.S. District Judge Thomas Parker in the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Tennessee blocked the law after Friends of George’s, a self-described “LGBTQ theatre company” based in Memphis, filed a suit challenging the law.

Blount County Pride, being represented by the ACLU, claims that Desmond’s letter to the “Pride” group was “a naked attempt to chill free speech.” 

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“Had Defendant Desmond merely wished to notify the public that he intends to enforce the [law], he could have issued a public statement,” the lawsuit states. “Instead, he sent a letter targeting Blount Pride and the drag artists who are scheduled to perform,” the lawsuit from the ACLU said. 

Tennessee’s law has been supported by an 18 state coalition and America First Legal in court, who say that the law is necessary to protect children. 

“Protecting children from obscene and lewd behavior is not a new idea. We need to let kids be kids, and the state has legal authority to ensure their protection,” South Carolina Attorney General Alan Wilson said in a news release.