Flo Débarre
@flodebarre.bsky.social
Personal account
Evolutionary biologist, senior scientist at CNRS/Sorbonne Université
Interests: origins and control of infectious diseases and conspiracy theories; diversity in science; scientific publishing
https://www.normalesup.org/~fdebarre/
EN & FR
Evolutionary biologist, senior scientist at CNRS/Sorbonne Université
Interests: origins and control of infectious diseases and conspiracy theories; diversity in science; scientific publishing
https://www.normalesup.org/~fdebarre/
EN & FR
PDG ;-)
Merci pour la recommandation !
Merci pour la recommandation !
January 18, 2026 at 10:23 AM
PDG ;-)
Merci pour la recommandation !
Merci pour la recommandation !
what happens after you use the search box?
January 16, 2026 at 9:09 PM
what happens after you use the search box?
In their paragraph, they blame Fauci for the decrease. Why is the journal accepting to publish this? It's downright a lie.
January 16, 2026 at 4:43 PM
In their paragraph, they blame Fauci for the decrease. Why is the journal accepting to publish this? It's downright a lie.
Yes it seems that the examples are used purely for political purposes, without concern for their veracity...
January 16, 2026 at 1:19 PM
Yes it seems that the examples are used purely for political purposes, without concern for their veracity...
NSF is actually not even relevant, because the study was funded by NIH (National Institute on Drug Abuse). It ended ten years ago.
Scicurious wrote about it in .... 2011
www.scientificamerican.com/blog/scicuri...
Scicurious wrote about it in .... 2011
www.scientificamerican.com/blog/scicuri...
Cocaine and the sexual habits of quail, or, why does NIH fund what it does?
www.scientificamerican.com
January 16, 2026 at 8:19 AM
NSF is actually not even relevant, because the study was funded by NIH (National Institute on Drug Abuse). It ended ten years ago.
Scicurious wrote about it in .... 2011
www.scientificamerican.com/blog/scicuri...
Scicurious wrote about it in .... 2011
www.scientificamerican.com/blog/scicuri...
Nice! And it's in the public part of the website, accessible without having an account.
gisaid.org/phylodynamic...
and here as of January 2021 web.archive.org/web/20210120...
gisaid.org/phylodynamic...
and here as of January 2021 web.archive.org/web/20210120...
January 15, 2026 at 8:48 PM
Nice! And it's in the public part of the website, accessible without having an account.
gisaid.org/phylodynamic...
and here as of January 2021 web.archive.org/web/20210120...
gisaid.org/phylodynamic...
and here as of January 2021 web.archive.org/web/20210120...
Heads up. HHS is disputing this report on the halt to the trial
January 15, 2026 at 6:30 PM
Looks like Figure 7 from this scielo.sld.cu/scielo.php?s...
January 15, 2026 at 4:25 PM
Looks like Figure 7 from this scielo.sld.cu/scielo.php?s...
BREAKING: The controversial hepatitis B vaccine trial in Guinea-Bissau has been *cancelled,* I can now report. A senior official with Africa CDC confirmed the cancellation and said GB officials are working to make sure any research is conducted ethically:
www.theguardian.com/us-news/2026...
www.theguardian.com/us-news/2026...
Controversial US study on hepatitis B vaccines in Africa is cancelled
$1.6m project drew outrage over ethical questions about withholding vaccines proven to prevent disease
www.theguardian.com
January 15, 2026 at 3:58 PM
It's not working at all for me, and it seems to be a problem with Cloudflare (again)
January 14, 2026 at 3:24 PM
It's not working at all for me, and it seems to be a problem with Cloudflare (again)
Ah, I'm curious!! Is this the meteorite hypothesis, or a different one?
January 12, 2026 at 2:51 PM
Ah, I'm curious!! Is this the meteorite hypothesis, or a different one?
Les flux de GISAID vers les outils publics très utiles que sont cov-spectrum, Nextstrain, Outbreakinfo, et d'autres, ont été interrompus. Les séquences SARS-CoV-2 postées uniquement sur GISAID n'y apparaissent plus.
Fresh conflicts erupt around giant database for flu and COVID-19 sequences
Critics say “autocratic” behavior by GISAID could hamper response to a future pandemic
www.science.org
January 10, 2026 at 9:14 AM
Les flux de GISAID vers les outils publics très utiles que sont cov-spectrum, Nextstrain, Outbreakinfo, et d'autres, ont été interrompus. Les séquences SARS-CoV-2 postées uniquement sur GISAID n'y apparaissent plus.
Quand même les médias traditionnels promeuvent des théories du complot, difficile de faire le poids. En France, le service Science du Monde est une tête de pont lab leak depuis 2020 ; ils se sont fait l'écho des théories les plus absurdes...
January 6, 2026 at 7:15 PM
Quand même les médias traditionnels promeuvent des théories du complot, difficile de faire le poids. En France, le service Science du Monde est une tête de pont lab leak depuis 2020 ; ils se sont fait l'écho des théories les plus absurdes...
The EMI article was a non-story, but it gave an idea of the methods of conspiracy theorists: manufacture outrage, paint scientists as untrustworthy, amplify each other on social media.
More details in this blog post: pandemonium.hypotheses.org/331 ▫️6/6
#covidorigin
More details in this blog post: pandemonium.hypotheses.org/331 ▫️6/6
#covidorigin
The making of outrage
How conspiracy theorists tried to make a story about an early commentary on the origin of SARS-CoV-2. In late February 2020, the journal Emerging Microbes & Infections (EMI) published a 9-paragraph-lo...
pandemonium.hypotheses.org
January 6, 2026 at 6:20 PM
The EMI article was a non-story, but it gave an idea of the methods of conspiracy theorists: manufacture outrage, paint scientists as untrustworthy, amplify each other on social media.
More details in this blog post: pandemonium.hypotheses.org/331 ▫️6/6
#covidorigin
More details in this blog post: pandemonium.hypotheses.org/331 ▫️6/6
#covidorigin
In January 2025, the journal published an Addendum, addressing the leakers' criticisms. It was only noticed months later.
The Addendum closed the case. ▫️5/6
www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10....
The Addendum closed the case. ▫️5/6
www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10....
Addendum
Published in Emerging Microbes & Infections (Vol. 14, No. 1, 2025)
www.tandfonline.com
January 6, 2026 at 6:20 PM
In January 2025, the journal published an Addendum, addressing the leakers' criticisms. It was only noticed months later.
The Addendum closed the case. ▫️5/6
www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10....
The Addendum closed the case. ▫️5/6
www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10....
Online controversy largely arose from coordinated amplification on Twitter/X, where a small number of activist accounts generated a disproportionate share of engagement. ▫️4/6
(interactive version of the plot in the blog post link below)
(interactive version of the plot in the blog post link below)
January 6, 2026 at 6:20 PM
Online controversy largely arose from coordinated amplification on Twitter/X, where a small number of activist accounts generated a disproportionate share of engagement. ▫️4/6
(interactive version of the plot in the blog post link below)
(interactive version of the plot in the blog post link below)
Lab leak activists tried to manufacture a controversy out of FOIA'd emails, as usual by taking sentences out of context -- and losing track of the main point: whether the contents of the article were correct or not... ▫️3/6
January 6, 2026 at 6:20 PM
Lab leak activists tried to manufacture a controversy out of FOIA'd emails, as usual by taking sentences out of context -- and losing track of the main point: whether the contents of the article were correct or not... ▫️3/6
Published in Feb 2020 as a Commentary, a brief article refuted claims that SARS-CoV-2 had been engineered from RaTG13, SHC014 or MA15, or HIV.
Nothing controversial here! And the article's impact was limited. But it was targeted by FOIA requests. ▫️2/6
Nothing controversial here! And the article's impact was limited. But it was targeted by FOIA requests. ▫️2/6
January 6, 2026 at 6:20 PM
Published in Feb 2020 as a Commentary, a brief article refuted claims that SARS-CoV-2 had been engineered from RaTG13, SHC014 or MA15, or HIV.
Nothing controversial here! And the article's impact was limited. But it was targeted by FOIA requests. ▫️2/6
Nothing controversial here! And the article's impact was limited. But it was targeted by FOIA requests. ▫️2/6