copenlu/druid huggingface dataset:
Claim: COVID-19 vaccines contain proteins from HIV; “if you have taken the third dose, go and take a test for AIDS, then sue your government” (Facebook users, 2023-12-16)
Evidence (2022-08-19): Vaccination with a SARS-CoV-2 mRNA vaccine revealed HIV hiding in immune cells in blood from people with HIV, according to lab research led by Weill Cornell Medicine investigators. The findings, published Aug. 19 in Nature Communications, identify new tools for evaluating treatment approaches in development aimed at curing HIV. [...] For their research, the investigators, including co-first authors Eva Stevenson, Sandra Terry and Dennis Copertino, members of Dr. Jones’ lab, treated blood from individuals with HIV who were unvaccinated and had never had COVID-19 to the Pfizer-BioNTech or Moderna COVID-19 mRNA vaccine in test tubes. The Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine produced a greater release of HIV RNA. Next, the researchers analyzed blood from individuals with HIV before COVID-19 vaccination and after each of two shots. In particular, they found that killer CD8+ T cells that target cells marked by an early gene product of HIV called Nef had released the protein granzyme B, a robust marker of recent attempts by the CD8+ T cells to kill HIV. This response, observed after the first shot, was correlated with a subsequent reduction in HIV RNA – suggesting some elimination of infected cells by the boosted CD8+ T cells.
Claim: COVID-19 vaccines contain proteins from HIV; “if you have taken the third dose, go and take a test for AIDS, then sue your government” (Facebook users, 2023-12-16)
Evidence (2023-12-27): FULL CLAIM: COVID-19 vaccines contain proteins from HIV; "if you have taken the third dose, go and take a test for AIDS, then sue your government"; "Why was this kept from…You??" The claim that COVID-19 vaccines cause acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS) because they contain proteins from the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV)—the virus responsible for AIDS—circulated on social media in December 2023. This claim already appeared in October 2023, and an analysis from Reuters found it inaccurate. [...] The reel then cut to the question, "Why was this kept from…You??" and to a statement by virologist Luc Montagnier saying "if you have taken the third dose, go and take a test for AIDS, then sue your government". Montagnier propagated disinformation against vaccines and COVID-19 on numerous occasions.
Claim: COVID-19 vaccines contain proteins from HIV; “if you have taken the third dose, go and take a test for AIDS, then sue your government” (Facebook users, 2023-12-16)
Evidence (2023-01-29): AP’S ASSESSMENT: False. There is no evidence that any COVID-19 vaccine contains HIV, an expert in infectious diseases and vaccinology told The Associated Press. Experts have repeatedly shot down similar claims in the past, explaining that the vaccines also do not make recipients more susceptible to contracting HIV. [...] The claim is baseless. The COVID-19 vaccines do not contain HIV, according to John Swartzberg, a clinical professor of infectious diseases and vaccinology at the University of California, Berkeley. [...] Various conspiracy theories falsely linking the COVID-19 vaccines to HIV and AIDS have spread online in the past, and other experts have reiterated that there is no connection. "There is nothing in the COVID vaccines that contain either HIV or increase a body’s susceptibility to contracting HIV," Dr. Monica Gandhi, associate chief of the division of HIV, infectious diseases and global medicine at the University of California San Francisco Medical School, told the AP in 2021.
Claim: COVID-19 vaccines contain proteins from HIV; “if you have taken the third dose, go and take a test for AIDS, then sue your government” (Facebook users, 2023-12-16)
Evidence (2021-11-01): Several studies have shown that booster doses are effective in people with HIV and other immunocompromised people, leading to substantial increases in antibody levels. A large US study that covered the period when the Delta and Omicron variants were circulating in the United States showed that immunocompromised people – including people living with HIV – who received a third vaccine dose were significantly less likely to be admitted to hospital with severe COVID-19 or experience a breakthrough infection when compared to immunocompromised people who had been vaccinated without boosting (Sun). An Israeli study of the effects of a fourth vaccine dose showed that by the sixth week after receiving this fourth dose, recipients were 77% less likely to develop severe COVID-19 disease than people of the same age who had only received three doses (Bar-On). [...] - COVID-19 vaccines are safe in people with HIV. There is no evidence that people with HIV have a higher rate of side effects after vaccination or unusual side effects. There is no evidence that any COVID-19 vaccine interacts with HIV treatment or causes HIV viral load to increase. - COVID-19 vaccines are effective in most people with HIV. They stimulate strong antibody responses in people with HIV with higher CD4 counts. People with lower CD4 counts (below 200) have weaker responses to vaccination and their antibody responses after vaccination may dwindle faster than those of people with higher CD4 counts.
Claim: COVID-19 vaccines contain proteins from HIV; “if you have taken the third dose, go and take a test for AIDS, then sue your government” (Facebook users, 2023-12-16)
Evidence (2023-02-20): Overcoming challenges "HIV has many tricks up its sleeve, making it hard to develop an effective vaccine using standard methods," explained Marovich. "As one of the fastest-mutating viruses, HIV has millions of variants. By comparison, the number of SARS-CoV-2 variants of concern or variants of interest causing the COVID-19 pandemic is about a dozen [as of December 2022]." [...] NIH Launches Clinical Trial of Three mRNA HIV Vaccines - NIAID is supporting some of the first human tests of HIV vaccines based on mRNA technology.
Claim: COVID-19 vaccines contain proteins from HIV; “if you have taken the third dose, go and take a test for AIDS, then sue your government” (Facebook users, 2023-12-16)
Evidence (2024-07-22): Many of the initial clinical studies with COVID-19 vaccines have included a small number of people living with HIV (PLHIV) in their trials. Despite limited data, available information from those studies suggests that current WHO recommended COVID-19 vaccines are safe for PLHIV. The currently available COVID-19 vaccine products are not live vaccines but include modified viral proteins or genetic material from SARS-CoV-2 which cannot replicate or cause changes to human genes. More recent observational studies have further evaluated the safety of COVID-19 vaccines in this population and didn’t find any evidence of a higher rate of unusual side effects after vaccination when compared with general population. In addition, no pharmacological interactions have been reported between COVID-19 vaccines and antiretroviral medications (ARV) which [...] Currently approved COVID-19 vaccines are safe and effective in most PLHIV, with significant reduction in the risk of severe COVID-19 disease or death when the standard regimen (currently 1 or 2 doses of the approved COVID-19 vaccine depending on the product) is fully taken as recommended. However, there is a growing evidence of a suboptimal immune response to the standard course of COVID-19 vaccination in people with moderate to severe immunodeficiency, including those with advanced HIV disease, lower CD4 T-cell counts, or unsuppressed viral load.
Claim: COVID-19 vaccines contain proteins from HIV; “if you have taken the third dose, go and take a test for AIDS, then sue your government” (Facebook users, 2023-12-16)
Evidence (2022-08-22): Immunogenicity to COVID-19 mRNA vaccine third dose in people living with HIV - PMID: 35995780 - PMCID: PMC9395398 - DOI: 10.1038/s41467-022-32263-7 Immunogenicity to COVID-19 mRNA vaccine third dose in people living with HIV In order to investigate safety and immunogenicity of SARS-CoV-2 vaccine third dose in people living with HIV (PLWH), we analyze anti-RBD, microneutralization assay and IFN-γ production in 216 PLWH on ART with advanced disease (CD4 count <200 cell/mm3 and/or previous AIDS) receiving the third dose of a mRNA vaccine (BNT162b2 or mRNA-1273) after a median of 142 days from the second dose. Median age is 54 years, median CD4 nadir 45 cell/mm3 (20-122), 93% HIV-RNA < 50 c/mL. In 68% of PLWH at least one side-effect, generally mild, is recorded. Humoral response after the third dose was strong and higher than that achieved with the second dose (>2 log2 difference), especially when a heterologous combination with mRNA-1273 as third shot is used. In contrast, cell-mediated immunity remain stable. Our data support usefulness of third dose in PLWH currently receiving suppressive ART who presented with severe immune dysregulation.
Claim: COVID-19 vaccines contain proteins from HIV; “if you have taken the third dose, go and take a test for AIDS, then sue your government” (Facebook users, 2023-12-16)
Evidence (2024-10-09): Costiniuk, C. T. et al. COVID-19 vaccine immunogenicity in people with HIV. AIDS37, F1–F10 (2023). Heftdal, L. D. et al. Humoral and cellular immune responses eleven months after the third dose of BNT162b2 an mRNA-based COVID-19 vaccine in people with HIV - a prospective observational cohort study. EBioMedicine93, 104661 (2023). [...] Vergori, A. et al. Immunogenicity to COVID-19 mRNA vaccine third dose in people living with HIV. Nat. Commun.13, 4922 (2022).
Claim: COVID-19 vaccines contain proteins from HIV; “if you have taken the third dose, go and take a test for AIDS, then sue your government” (Facebook users, 2023-12-16)
Evidence (2024-01-31): For COVID-19 vaccines, all of the approved vaccines so far used the spike protein. The spike protein is located on the outside of a coronavirus and is how SARS-CoV-2 (the coronavirus) enters human cells. Its location on the outside of the virus makes it so the immune system can recognize it easily. [...] The Infectious Disease Society of America (IDSA) estimates that the spike proteins that were generated by COVID-19 vaccines last up to a few weeks, like other proteins made by the body. The immune system quickly identifies, attacks and destroys the spike proteins because it recognizes them as not part of you. This "learning the enemy" process is how the immune system figures out how to defeat the real coronavirus. It remembers what it saw and when you are exposed to coronavirus in the future it can rapidly mount an effective immune response.
Claim: COVID-19 vaccines contain proteins from HIV; “if you have taken the third dose, go and take a test for AIDS, then sue your government” (Facebook users, 2023-12-16)
Evidence (2023-12-27): Approved COVID-19 vaccines don’t contain HIV proteins and don’t cause AIDS, contrary to claim misquoting BBC documentary [...] Misleading: The claim misleads viewers into believing that the COVID-19 vaccines available to the public contain a HIV protein fragment, which is false. Although a vaccine candidate presented in the BBC documentary contained a HIV protein fragment, this candidate didn’t make it past clinical trials. [...] The reel then cut to the question, "Why was this kept from…You??" and to a statement by virologist Luc Montagnier saying "if you have taken the third dose, go and take a test for AIDS, then sue your government". Montagnier propagated disinformation against vaccines and COVID-19 on numerous occasions.
Claim: COVID-19 vaccines contain proteins from HIV; “if you have taken the third dose, go and take a test for AIDS, then sue your government” (Facebook users, 2023-12-16)
Evidence (2024-10-08): Third main stage: AIDS [...] - ^ "HIV/AIDS Testing". U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). March 16, 2018. Archived from the original on April 14, 2018. Retrieved April 14, 2018.
Claim: COVID-19 vaccines contain proteins from HIV; “if you have taken the third dose, go and take a test for AIDS, then sue your government” (Facebook users, 2023-12-16)
Evidence (2024-08-23): Questions? If you have HIV, see a healthcare provider to discuss if the mpox vaccine is right for you.
Claim: COVID-19 vaccines contain proteins from HIV; “if you have taken the third dose, go and take a test for AIDS, then sue your government” (Facebook users, 2023-12-16)
Evidence (2023-01-27): • completion of primary vaccination with any authorized or approved monovalent* COVID-19 vaccine; or • receipt of the most recent booster dose with any authorized or approved monovalent* COVID-19 vaccine *Monovalent refers to any authorized and approved COVID-19 vaccine that contains or encodes the spike protein of only the Original SARS-CoV-2 virus.
Claim: COVID-19 vaccines contain proteins from HIV; “if you have taken the third dose, go and take a test for AIDS, then sue your government” (Facebook users, 2023-12-16)
Evidence (2023-04-18): Pfizer’s updated COVID-19 vaccine, designed for the Omicron XBB.1.5 subvariant (Kraken) only differs from earlier COVID-19 vaccines in that it contains mRNA coding for the spike protein of a different SARS-CoV-2 sublineage. A clinical study of this vaccine in humans is fully enrolled, and data are expected in late 2023. - Can the COVID-19 vaccine cause Vaccine-Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome (VAIDS)? Vaccine-Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome (VAIDS) is a term primarily used on social media and is not a condition that is recognized by expert medical communities. COVID-19 vaccines work by triggering the body’s natural immune response. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), "There is no scientific evidence that COVID-19 vaccines weaken or impair the immune system." Further, the CDC notes that there is no relationship between COVID-19 vaccination and human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) or acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS).13 - Does Albert Bourla want to "reduce the number of people in the world by 50%"?
Claim: “Bill Gates explains that the COVID vaccine will use experimental technology and permanently alter your DNA” (Alex Pietrowski, Facebook users, 2020-06-30)
Evidence (2020-06-30): Previous studies have demonstrated that RNA vaccines are generally safe. Studies examining the potential integration of nucleic acid vaccines into DNA have shown that RNA from a vaccine does not alter DNA. RNA from a vaccine is also very unlikely to cause autoimmunity, as RNA is short-lived, being quickly degraded by cells after it has been used to make a protein. Therefore RNA does not persist long enough to cause autoimmune disorders, which are chronic in nature. In fact, some nucleic acid vaccines are being developed to treat autoimmune diseases.
Claim: “Bill Gates explains that the COVID vaccine will use experimental technology and permanently alter your DNA” (Alex Pietrowski, Facebook users, 2020-06-30)
Evidence (2023-01-15): Explanation: Bill Gates explained in his own blog post that there were many different types of vaccines being tested to create a COVID-19 vaccine, including experimental RNA and DNA vaccines. There is still no way of knowing what the COVID-19 vaccine will look like.
Claim: “Bill Gates explains that the COVID vaccine will use experimental technology and permanently alter your DNA” (Alex Pietrowski, Facebook users, 2020-06-30)
Evidence (2022-03-04): Claims that COVID-19 jabs can alter human DNA resurfaced this week as vaccine sceptics across social media seized upon the results of a new study to suggest that people receiving the vaccine risked changing or even poisoning their genes. "YES THE ‘VACCINE' ALTERS YOUR DNA," read one post in a popular conspiracy forum, viewed more than 30,000 times. [...] Claims of mRNA vaccines altering human DNA have persisted throughout the pandemic, despite being debunked by fact checkers at Reuters, PolitiFact and AFP.
Claim: “Bill Gates explains that the COVID vaccine will use experimental technology and permanently alter your DNA” (Alex Pietrowski, Facebook users, 2020-06-30)
Evidence (2024-10-07): The rapid development and rollout of COVID vaccines is likely to be one of the greatest achievements of medical science ever. It also means we are in a much better position to respond to future emerging pathogens.
Claim: “Bill Gates explains that the COVID vaccine will use experimental technology and permanently alter your DNA” (Alex Pietrowski, Facebook users, 2020-06-30)
Evidence (2020-05-15): A recent Facebook post links to an article titled, "Bill Gates Explains That The COVID Vaccine Will Use Experimental Technology And Permanently Alter Your DNA." [...] A blog post shared on social media reads "Bill Gates Explains That The COVID Vaccine Will Use Experimental Technology And Permanently Alter Your DNA." [...] Waking Times, Bill Gates Explains That The COVID Vaccine Will Use Experimental Technology And Permanently Alter Your DNA, May 15, 2020
Claim: “Bill Gates explains that the COVID vaccine will use experimental technology and permanently alter your DNA” (Alex Pietrowski, Facebook users, 2020-06-30)
Evidence (2020-05-29): Coronavirus: Bill Gates ‘microchip’ conspiracy theory and other vaccine claims fact-checked
Claim: “Bill Gates explains that the COVID vaccine will use experimental technology and permanently alter your DNA” (Alex Pietrowski, Facebook users, 2020-06-30)
Evidence (2022-03-21): A recent tweet from Newsmax Media’s White House correspondent Emerald Robinson claimed the ingredients of a potential vaccine for COVID-19 could rewrite your DNA. Is this legit? [...] This is likely where the Twitter user got the idea that the vaccine will change your DNA. The thing is, that’s not how transfection works. Let’s look at this list of vaccine proposals from the University of Michigan’s health department for examples. Rather than changing DNA, these vaccines are designed to deliver the instructions for proteins to recreate an immune response to COVID-19 using the genes of the virus. [...] Reuters fact-checked a similar claim about COVID-19 vaccines genetically modifying humans, which they rated as false. Reuters interviewed Mark Lynas, a visiting fellow at Cornell University’s Alliance for Science group, who said no vaccine can genetically modify human DNA. "That’s just a myth, one often spread intentionally by anti-vaccination activists to deliberately generate confusion and mistrust," Lynas told Reuters. "Genetic modification would involve the deliberate insertion of foreign DNA into the nucleus of a human cell, and vaccines simply don’t do that."
Claim: “Bill Gates explains that the COVID vaccine will use experimental technology and permanently alter your DNA” (Alex Pietrowski, Facebook users, 2020-06-30)
Evidence (2020-05-29): Coronavirus: Bill Gates ‘microchip’ conspiracy theory and other vaccine claims fact-checked - Published
Claim: “Bill Gates explains that the COVID vaccine will use experimental technology and permanently alter your DNA” (Alex Pietrowski, Facebook users, 2020-06-30)
Evidence (2020-06-29): Bill Gates owns the patent and vaccine for coronavirus. [...] "Isn’t it Amazing that Bill Gates Owns The Patent For Coronavirus and Owns The Vaccine. He is also A Partner n [sic] the Lab In Wuhan China" [...] There is not yet an effective Covid-19 vaccine, although trials of potential vaccines are ongoing. So neither Bill Gates nor the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation own the patent for a Covid-19 vaccine.
Claim: “Bill Gates explains that the COVID vaccine will use experimental technology and permanently alter your DNA” (Alex Pietrowski, Facebook users, 2020-06-30)
Evidence (2022-02-12): The DFRLab analyzed the COVID-19 misinformation database compiled by Poynter’s CoronaVirusFacts Alliance and identified 96 debunks of the claim that COVID-19 vaccines alter human DNA. Many of these narratives gained credibility by falsely attributing the information to authoritative figures like Microsoft founder Bill Gates and former Moderna chief medical officer Tal Zaks. The false claims were then amplified by medical professionals who practice alternative medicine and demonstrate clear anti-vaccine sentiments. [...] The myth that COVID-19 vaccines could change a person’s DNA first appeared after Bill Gates published a video on April 30, 2020 detailing how COVID-19 mRNA vaccines work. At no point in the video does Gates suggest that the vaccines can alter DNA. Shortly after the video was published, Waking Times, a website that frequently publishes conspiracies and pseudoscience, released an article titled, "Bill Gates Explains That The COVID Vaccine Will Use Experimental Technology And Permanently Alter Your DNA." The article’s author, Alex Pietrowski, has a minimal web presence, as the DFRLab found few verifiably connected sources beyond Waking Times itself. [...] Despite numerous debunks, false narratives about COVID-19 vaccines altering DNA remained pervasive, as it kept reappearing in numerous countries over the course of the period analyzed by the DFRLab. In the below chart measuring the lifespan of the variations of the story, the spikes are most significant when it comes to conspiracies directly mentioning mRNA vaccines. This is due to active transnational amplification of the falsehood, which originated from authentic comments from Gates and Zaks that were later misconstrued to present the false allegation that they were "admitting" to mRNA vaccine technology altering human DNA.
Claim: “Bill Gates explains that the COVID vaccine will use experimental technology and permanently alter your DNA” (Alex Pietrowski, Facebook users, 2020-06-30)
Evidence (2020-12-02): The fear that a vaccine will somehow change your DNA is one we've seen aired regularly on social media. The BBC asked three independent scientists about this. They said that the coronavirus vaccine would not alter human DNA. [...] This isn't the first time we've looked into claims that a coronavirus vaccine will supposedly alter DNA. We investigated a popular video spreading the theory back in May.
Claim: “Bill Gates explains that the COVID vaccine will use experimental technology and permanently alter your DNA” (Alex Pietrowski, Facebook users, 2020-06-30)
Evidence (2020-12-17): MYTH: The mRNA vaccines being developed for COVID-19 will alter human DNA. [...] MRNA vaccines are a new technology, but it is not possible for those vaccines to alter your DNA. "This cannot change your genetic makeup," Dr. Dan Culver, a pulmonologist at Cleveland Clinic, told The Associated Press in September 2020. "The time that this RNA survives in the cells is relatively brief in the span of hours. What you are really doing is sticking a recipe card into the cell making protein for a few hours." [...] MYTH: The COVID-19 vaccine will use microchip surveillance technology created by Bill Gates-funded research.
Claim: “Bill Gates explains that the COVID vaccine will use experimental technology and permanently alter your DNA” (Alex Pietrowski, Facebook users, 2020-06-30)
Evidence (2022-07-12): The gene Verve is editing is called PCSK9. It has a big role in maintaining LDL levels and the company says its treatment will turn the gene off by introducing a one-letter misspelling. [...] One reason Verve's base-editing technique is moving fast is that the technology is substantially similar to mRNA vaccines for covid-19. Just like the vaccines, the treatment consists of genetic instructions wrapped in a nanoparticle, which ferries everything into a cell. While the vaccine instructs cells to make a component of the SARS-CoV-2 virus, the particles in Verve's treatment carry RNA directions for a cell to assemble and aim a base-editing protein, which then modifies that cell's copy of PCSK9, introducing the tiny mistake. In experiments on monkeys, Verve found that the treatment lowered bad cholesterol by 60%. The effect has lasted more than a year in the animals and could well be permanent. The report notes that the human experiment does carry some risk. "Nanoparticles are somewhat toxic, and there have been reports of side effects, like muscle pain, in people taking other drugs to lower PCSK9," reports MIT Technology Review.