SCIENCE science.org 6 MAY 2022 • VOL 376 ISSUE 6593 559PHOTO: JAN MARTINEK/OLYMPUS IMAGE OF THE YEAR AWARD 2021the French Medical Council for his hydroxy-
chloroquine advocacy. ANSM’s investigation
will continue to scrutinize further trials,
alongside investigations by other French
authorities. In a statement to Science,
Raoult said IHU followed ethical proce-
dures and that the investigation may be an
attempt to undermine his credibility, given
his role as a witness in an investigation into
the government’s COVID-19 management.COVID-19 pills fail at prevention
CLINICAL TRIALS | Pfizer’s antiviral pill
combination fails to prevent infection
among household contacts of patients
with COVID-19, a clinical trial has
found. Paxlovid, a mix of two drugs,
nirmatrelvir and ritonavir, is prescribed
to COVID-19 patients with risk factors
such as older age and obesity that place
them at higher risk of hospitalization or
death. Now, Pfizer has tested it in nearly
3000 household contacts of people who
tested positive for the coronavirus. The
trial found that when adults who had an
infected household member took the drug
for either 5 or 10 days, they were 32% or
37% less likely than those on a placebo
to later test positive themselves—but the
differences between the groups were not
statistically significant, the company said,
and could have resulted from chance.
Some antivirals, such as those for HIV,
have worked as preventives.A bid to recruit Russian scientists
WAR | A U.S. proposal to poach Russian
researchers opposed to the invasion of
Ukraine is receiving mixed reviews. Last
week, Bloomberg and other media outlets
reported that President Joe Biden’s admin-
istration, as part of a request to Congress
for $33 billion in spending on Ukraine, is
seeking to ease visa requirements for the
next 4 years for Russian scientists in high-
tech fields such as artificial intelligence,
quantum physics, and semiconductors.
Some administration officials compare the
concept to Operation Paperclip, a clan-
destine U.S. effort after World War II that
spirited more than 1600 researchers—many
of them rocket scientists—out of Germany
before the Soviet Union could absorb
them. The overall spending measure has
drawn bipartisan support in Congress. But,
“It’s really crazy” that the new proposal is
being discussed openly beforehand, says
Gerson Sher, an independent consultant
and expert on Russian science engagement.
Russia, he notes, could now move to clois-
ter top scientists or otherwise restrict them
from traveling abroad.China tech giant boosts research
FUNDING | Tencent, the Chinese social
media, e-commerce, and video game
conglomerate, will put up $1.5 billion over
10 years to support basic research in bio-
logy, math, medicine, and physics in that
country, Chinese media reported last week.
The New Cornerstone Researcher Project is
expected to allow up to 300 researchers to
freely pursue their scientific interests. The
new fund is one of several Tencent philan-
thropic efforts responding to government
calls for successful high-tech companies to
share their prosperity with society. Private
and corporate philanthropy has been
growing in China but the focus has long
been on education and poverty alleviation,
although the COVID-19 crisis prompteddonations for research on vaccines and
antiviral drugs. Tencent’s move aligns with
a government drive to boost support for
basic research from 6% of the country’s
total R&D spending in 2021 to 8% by 2025.
The fund will begin accepting applications
for grants later this year.UC campus buys Venter building
BIOLOGY | The nonprofit research center
founded by renowned geneticist Craig
Venter has sold its laboratory building in
San Diego, California, to the University of
California, San Diego (UCSD), for
$25 million. The transaction occurred in
January, and the J. Craig Venter Institute
(JCVI) announced it last week. The sale
allows JCVI to operate rent-free there forIN FOCUS The flower of Arabidopsis thaliana, a popular model organism in plant
biology, was the top winner of the Olympus Image of the Year Award 2021,
which honors light microscopy, announced last week. The flower, about 3 millimeters
in diameter, was stained with aniline blue dye; under fluorescent light, six anthers
containing pollen appear yellow-green. The image was taken by Jan Martinek, a Ph.D.
student in plant biology at Charles University in Prague.0506nib_15564720.indd 559 5/3/22 5:52 PM