Comment by Holden Thorp

The first is a letter published in our commentary section in May 2021 from prominent researchers in the area of COVID-19 origins, led by virologist, Jesse Bloom. This letter called for a thorough investigation of a lab origin of COVID-19. When we published it, I wrote that, "Good science requires that the laboratory escape be rigorously investigated before being ruled out. China should allow for a dispassionate examination of the data and allow scientists to do what they are trained to do." The publication of this letter turned the tide in the discussion of COVID origins toward considering the possibility of a lab origin, and I stand firmly by this sentiment today. I also want to highlight two papers from virologists Michael Worobey and Jonathan Pekar, published in our research section in 2022. These papers present geospatial and genetic information that support, but do not conclusively prove, the theory of natural origin.