# Follow a grant. Stop at the evidence.

## Research Fund Flows — case edition 01

**Research cutoff:** September 12, 2026 (America/New_York). **Edition:** 1.0.
Public API responses and institutional records were rechecked on that date;
exact retrieval timestamps, requests and hashes accompany the evidence. This is
a completed, historical method-and-case edition, not live monitoring, a global
funding estimate, or a determination of misconduct.

**Read the [web edition](../cases/nih-ecohealth-wiv/index.html).** Download the [relationship records](../data/edition-01/relationships.csv),
[source register](../data/edition-01/sources.json), [source-specific amounts](../data/edition-01/amounts.csv)
and [seven original-name subaward rows](../data/edition-01/subaward-rows.csv).

## The answer in brief

**NIH → EcoHealth → WIV is a documented onward-award path.** Five USAspending
rows labelled for Wuhan Institute of Virology (WIV) total **$598,500**. A separate
HHS Inspector General table identifies WIV under the same federal award and
reports a **$598,611 subaward amount** for the June 2014–May 2019 project period.
The **$111 difference remains unresolved**; these are two observations of the
same funding relationship, not two amounts to add. Neither is a public ledger of
WIV's ultimate spending. [USAspending subaward source S03][S03]; [OIG S04, Table 7][S04].

**NIH → Duke is documented; Duke → DKU is an institutional relationship, not a
traced transfer for this award.** The selected Duke FY2024 award is **$428,828**.
The matched USAspending prime record and its first-tier subaward query return
no subaward rows at the cutoff. Duke and Duke Kunshan University (DKU) have a
documented partnership, but the checked records do not connect that particular
award to DKU. **Not found is not a $0 finding.** [NIH S08][S08]; [USAspending S09–S10][S09];
[Duke S11][S11].

These cases were selected to test a documentary distinction: an actual
subaward bridge versus a tempting but invalid inference from affiliation.
They are not a representative sample of research grants, countries, universities,
or collaborations.

## Case A — a documented first-tier funding path

### 1. Identify the grant and the recipient before following the money

NIH RePORTER identifies **R01AI110964**, administered by the National Institute
of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID), with the title **“Understanding the
Risk of Bat Coronavirus Emergence.”** The FY2014 application, **8674931**, is
award **1R01AI110964-01**, made to **EcoHealth Alliance, Inc.** Its applicant-supplied
abstract describes field research at human–wildlife interfaces in China,
coronavirus characterization, emergence/host-range modeling, and laboratory
tests of cross-species transmission. This is the historical abstract, not the
different later renewal description. [NIH S01, application 8674931][S01].

NIH supplies EcoHealth UEI **TKS7NBB4JDN6** and historical DUNS **077090066**.
USAspending independently supplies the same UEI, recipient **ECOHEALTH ALLIANCE
INC**, and FAIN **R01AI110964**. The stable external USAspending identifier is
**ASST_NON_R01AI110964_075**; its current internal ID is **270144311**. This is an
award-and-identifier join, not a name-only match. [NIH S01][S01]; [USAspending S02][S02].

### 2. Keep unlike dollar measures apart

| Observation | Amount (USD) | What the amount and period mean |
|---|---:|---|
| NIH FY2014 award-year record | $666,442 | Budget period June 1, 2014–May 31, 2015; not the entire project |
| USAspending current prime-award obligation | $3,537,360.32 | Aggregate reported obligation; performance June 1, 2014–April 30, 2024; last modification April 21, 2025 |
| OIG historical prime award amount | $3,748,715 | Table 5/6 snapshot covering the FY2014–FY2021 audit window |
| OIG historical EcoHealth amount spent | $3,376,503 | Table 5 spending as of July 2021; not a WIV-only amount |

Sources: [NIH S01][S01]; [USAspending S02][S02]; [OIG S04, Appendix E Tables 5–6, printed pp.45–46 / PDF pp.53–54][S04-prime].

The USAspending record was signed May 27, 2014. Its aggregate includes a
different time scope from the first NIH budget year and the earlier audit.
**Do not add these amounts, pass the full prime award through every downstream
node, or call an obligation cash paid to China.** This edition does not
reconstruct every later prime-award adjustment. The seven returned NIH
award-year records, including their differing project-end fields, are preserved
in [the award-year download](../data/edition-01/nih-award-years.csv); they are not collapsed into
one alleged transfer. [USAspending S02][S02]; [NIH S01][S01].

### 3. The actual onward-award bridge

The exact-prime USAspending subaward query returned **seven rows** with
`hasNext=false`. Five carry the raw recipient label:

> WUHAN INSTITUTE OF VIROLOGY CHINESE ACADEMY OF SCIENCES CAPITAL CONSTRUCTION

| Reported action date | Subaward row ID | Reported amount (USD) |
|---|---|---:|
| May 29, 2015 | 4275874 | $133,000 |
| May 31, 2016 | 4275875 | $133,000 |
| May 31, 2017 | 4308789 | $133,000 |
| May 31, 2018 | 4308790 | $133,000 |
| May 31, 2019 | 4308788 | $66,500 |
| **Sum of these five rows** | | **$598,500** |

All five use subaward number **1R01AI110964-01**. The descriptions assign sample
testing, sequencing and analysis, sample cold-chain/storage quality, publication
and reporting work. These are reported subaward actions, not verified bank
transfers on those dates. [USAspending S03][S03].

**Identity resolution is explicit, not automatic.** The list response does not
provide a Chinese registration identifier. We retain its long raw label and use
“WIV” as an analyst-reviewed institutional match: the same prime award, the
subaward number, the distinctive institution name, OIG's independent identification
in Table 7, and WIV's own dated CAS institutional identity agree. This is **not**
a verified legal-register match for an entity called “capital construction.”
Nor does that suffix prove the subaward financed building construction.
[USAspending S03][S03]; [OIG S04][S04]; [WIV S05][S05].

The other two rows are **WUHAN UNIVERSITY SCHOOL OF PUBLIC HEALTH**:
$41,875 on May 31, 2016 and $159,342.10 on May 31, 2017, together **$201,217.10**.
All seven rows sum to **$799,717.10**, matching the prime response's subaward
aggregate. This unit is not WIV and is not DKU. Its presence is disclosed so a
five-row WIV subset is not mistaken for the award's complete returned list.
[USAspending S02–S03][S03].

### 4. The audit corroborates the path, not an exact reconciliation

HHS OIG report **A-05-21-00025**, dated January 2023, identifies **Wuhan Institute
of Virology, Foreign (China), NIH/NIAID, R01AI110964** in Appendix E Table 7.
Its column is **Subaward Amount**, with **$598,611**, and its federal award project
period is **June 1, 2014–May 31, 2019**. The footnote selects subawards in place
during FY2014–FY2021 for which EcoHealth's records showed expenditures as of
July 2021. That footnote does **not** rename the amount column “cash paid” or
“audited WIV expenditure.” [OIG S04, printed p.47 / PDF p.55][S04].

**$598,611 − $598,500 = $111.** The documents reviewed do not explain the
difference. Reporting dates, accounting scope or corrections could matter, but
none is established here as its cause. We retain both source definitions and do
not pick a preferred “true” total. The same table gives **$201,221** for Wuhan
University School of Public Health, **$3.90** above the two USAspending rows;
that smaller difference is also unresolved. [OIG S04][S04]; [USAspending S03][S03].

### 5. Where the funding trail stops

The documented financial path reaches the **named first-tier subrecipients**.
The checked records do not provide an exhaustive ledger of their onward
subrecipients, vendors, laboratories or ultimate uses. A named research institute
is not the same thing as a particular laboratory receiving every dollar. The
absence of those next-tier records supplies neither a hidden recipient nor proof
that no further transfer occurred.

This edition uses OIG's funding tables, not a graph-derived judgment on its
broader oversight findings. The full report contains NIH and EcoHealth comments
and OIG responses, including Appendices I–J. Nothing in this trace determines
the origin of COVID-19, covert direction, or misconduct. [OIG S04][S04].

## Case B — the Duke/Kunshan control

### A federal award and a partnership are two different facts

NIH RePORTER application **10879148**, **5R01HL155293-04**, identifies **Duke
University**, UEI **TP7EK8DZV6N5**, and **$428,828** in FY2024. The award is
administered by the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute (NHLBI), for
**“Accuracy and Precision in CT Quantification of COPD Through Virtual Imaging
Trials.”** The applicant describes computer-modeled patients and scanners to
evaluate and improve quantitative CT measures of COPD. The selected budget
period is **July 1, 2024–June 30, 2025**. This is a description of research
purpose, not clinical advice. [NIH S08][S08].

The matched USAspending award **ASST_NON_R01HL155293_075**, internal ID
**270232143**, has the same Duke UEI and FAIN **R01HL155293**. It reports
**$2,198,800** in aggregate obligations and performance **July 1, 2021–June 30,
2027**, last modified May 21, 2026. The NIH FY2024 record's overall project end
is **June 30, 2026**. Those source-specific period fields differ; we preserve
them rather than describing the award as having one reconciled end date.
Neither aggregate nor period supplies a DKU transfer. [USAspending S09][S09]; [NIH S08][S08].

Duke's Office of DKU Relations describes a joint-venture university formed by
Duke and Wuhan University, with investment from the city of Kunshan. A dated
Duke announcement dated **September 16, 2013** reports that the Ministry of
Education had granted final approval. DKU's **November 28, 2013** account of its inaugural board meeting
documents approval of foundational governance documents and representation
associated with Duke, Wuhan University and Kunshan. These are substantial
institutional facts, but none cites the selected NIH award. [Duke S11][S11];
[Duke S12][S12]; [DKU S13][S13].

### The checked bridge is missing

We checked the exact NIH application, the identifier-matched USAspending prime,
and its first-tier subaward endpoint, rather than stopping at Duke's partnership
description. The prime's reported subaward count is **0** and the subaward response
is **`results: []`, `hasNext: false`**. The public documents reviewed do not
establish an award-specific payment or subaward from Duke to DKU.
[USAspending S09–S10][S09]; [NIH S08][S08].

This is a **bounded not-found result**, not proof that nothing crossed borders.
It does not cover all Duke awards, vendor purchases, unreported arrangements,
or nonpublic grant budgets and agreements. The correct label is **“no
award-specific DKU transfer established,” not “$0 to China.”** A transfer claim
would require an award-linked budget, subagreement, expenditure record or
equivalent evidence; shared institutional names cannot substitute for it.

Likewise, Wuhan University's role in DKU cannot transform the EcoHealth award's
separate School of Public Health rows into DKU funding. That would be the same
invalid transitive inference across a different path.

## Six relationship types, kept separate

| Relationship type | Dated evidence and finding | Relevance to the selected grant |
|---|---|---|
| **Funding** | 2014–2019 WIV project-period subaward in OIG; 2015–2019 WIV-labelled USAspending actions. Duke FY2024 award; no first-tier rows returned September 12, 2026. [S01–S04][S04], [S08–S10][S09] | Direct award/subaward evidence where specified. A reporting gap is not another funding edge. |
| **Ownership** | No corporate shareholding instrument or percentage resolved in this edition. The checked sources describe a CAS institute and a university joint venture. [S05][S05], [S07][S07], [S11–S13][S11] | No corporate ownership percentage, ultimate-beneficial-owner, or “owned therefore funded” conclusion. |
| **PRC institutional affiliation** | WIV's November 1, 2018 account identifies its CAS relationship. State Council notice dated March 19, 2013 lists CAS among directly subordinate public institutions. [S05][S05], [S07][S07] | Historical institutional context for the named WIV recipient, not a second transfer or a PLA classification. |
| **PLA relationship** | No PLA funding, control or collaboration edge is established by the case source set. No comprehensive military-relationship investigation is claimed. [Reviewed-source scope](../data/edition-01/search-boundaries.json), G04 | No grant-directed military work asserted. This is an evidentiary boundary, not a finding that no military relationship exists. |
| **CCP governance** | WIV's January 31, 2018 report describes its Party committee's 2017 institutional work; November 1, 2018 announcement records CAS Party-group leadership appointments. [S05][S05], [S06][S06] | Contemporaneous governance is documented. Neither source identifies instructions for R01AI110964 or receipt of its funds. No equivalent DKU conclusion is inferred from a partner. |
| **Collaboration and university governance** | Duke–Wuhan–Kunshan relationship in September 2013 announcement, November 2013 board record and undated Duke page observed at cutoff. [S11][S11], [S12][S12], [S13][S13] | General institutional relationship only; no bridge to the selected Duke grant or from the EcoHealth subrecipient unit to DKU. |

Chinese institutional categories are paraphrased here. **事业单位** is rendered
as **public institution**, not a corporation with a presumed ownership percentage;
**党委** as **Party committee**; **党组** as **Party group**. The Chinese source
text and precise paragraphs remain available for review. Article/document dates,
not later URL migration folders, supply the dates used above.

## Method, coverage and source access

1. Resolve the federal award and recipient using the award number and UEI.
2. Retrieve the exact award's reported first-tier rows and preserve original labels.
3. Check an independent original document where available; inspect table headings
   and footnotes as well as the number.
4. Separate award-year amounts, current obligations, historical spending and
   subaward amounts. Do not sum alternate observations of the same relationship.
5. Date institutional relationships and record their specific relevance—or lack
   of established relevance—to the chosen award.
6. Mark stopping points and uncertainty. A missing result is not an allegation,
   a proof of absence, or an invitation to create an inferred edge.

The live refresh returned the same core EcoHealth/NIH values as the earlier
same-day saved feasibility receipts. This edition adds a complete narrative,
the identifier-matched Duke first-tier check, dated institutional evidence and
an inspectable reader-facing page. All 13 relied-on sources were retrieved
successfully directly from their official publishers. Exact POST requests are
in the source register; a browser visit to a POST-only API endpoint is not a
substitute for its recorded request.

Two convenience URLs did not work: WIV's former English profile failed
certificate validation and the old DKU welcome page returned HTTP 503. No
security checks were disabled. Dated WIV Chinese originals and dated Duke/DKU
records provided usable primary-source alternatives. These failures are logged
as access limits, not findings about the institutions. No paid databases, account
creation or nonpublic records were used.

### Source appendix and locators

All sources were retrieved **September 12, 2026**. Machine-readable metadata
includes exact times, request bodies, HTTP status, SHA-256 and receipt paths in
[sources.json](../data/edition-01/sources.json). Dates below are document dates unless noted.

| ID | Original source | Date | Exact locator |
|---|---|---|---|
| S01 | [NIH RePORTER: EcoHealth][S01] | Database snapshot | Application 8674931; `project_num`, `award_amount`, `budget_start/end`, `organization.org_ueis`, applicant abstract; seven-year export retained |
| S02 | [USAspending: EcoHealth prime][S02] | Last modified April 21, 2025 | `fain`, `recipient.recipient_uei`, `total_obligation`, `period_of_performance`, `subaward_count` |
| S03 | [USAspending: EcoHealth subawards][S03] | Snapshot; actions 2015–2019 | Exact POST for prime ID 270144311; WIV IDs in ledger above; Wuhan University IDs 4296600 and 4318113 |
| S04 | [HHS OIG A-05-21-00025][S04] | January 2023 | Appendix E Tables 5–7; printed pp.45–47 / PDF pp.53–55; Table 7 footnote; institutional comments in Appendices I–J |
| S05 | [WIV leadership announcement (Chinese)][S05] | November 1, 2018 | First two body paragraphs; event October 30, 2018 |
| S06 | [WIV 2017 leadership review (Chinese)][S06] | January 31, 2018 | First two body paragraphs; event January 29, 2018 |
| S07 | [State Council notice (Chinese)][S07] | March 19, 2013 | Section VI, CAS entry; official reproduction published April 3, 2013 |
| S08 | [NIH RePORTER: Duke][S08] | Database snapshot | Application 10879148; award, amount, budget and project dates, UEI, applicant abstract |
| S09 | [USAspending: Duke prime][S09] | Last modified May 21, 2026 | ID 270232143; FAIN, UEI, obligation, performance dates, count |
| S10 | [USAspending: Duke subaward query][S10] | Database snapshot | Exact POST for 270232143; empty results and `hasNext=false` |
| S11 | [Duke Office of DKU Relations][S11] | Undated, observed at cutoff | Opening description and paragraph beginning “Formed through a partnership” |
| S12 | [Duke's DKU approval announcement][S12] | September 16, 2013 | Opening and Kunshan support/campus paragraphs |
| S13 | [DKU inaugural board account][S13] | November 28, 2013 | First two paragraphs; November 11–12 board meeting |

**Reproduction:** use the original request metadata in the [source register](../data/edition-01/sources.json) for
a one-off refresh into new receipts; it does not update this reviewed edition
automatically. [Data notes](../data/edition-01/README.md) define relationship dates, financial
measures and the unresolved findings. [Review notes](../methods/index.html#verification) record
source, mobile, accessibility and print checks.

**Edition history:** 1.0, September 12, 2026 — first completed case-comparison
report and local web edition. Future corrections should identify the claim and
source, retain superseded values with dates, and issue a finite reviewed revision.
No external peer review is claimed.

[S01]: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/8674931
[S02]: https://www.usaspending.gov/award/ASST_NON_R01AI110964_075
[S03]: https://www.usaspending.gov/award/ASST_NON_R01AI110964_075
[S04]: https://oig.hhs.gov/documents/audit/7905/A-05-21-00025-Complete%20Report.pdf#page=55
[S04-prime]: https://oig.hhs.gov/documents/audit/7905/A-05-21-00025-Complete%20Report.pdf#page=53
[S05]: https://whiov.cas.cn/xwdt_160278/zhxw2019/201911/t20191111_5429832.html
[S06]: https://whiov.cas.cn/xwdt_160278/zhxw2019/201911/t20191111_5429752.html
[S07]: https://www.mee.gov.cn/zcwj/gwywj/201811/t20181129_676547.shtml
[S08]: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/10879148
[S09]: https://www.usaspending.gov/award/ASST_NON_R01HL155293_075
[S10]: https://www.usaspending.gov/award/ASST_NON_R01HL155293_075
[S11]: https://dkurelations.duke.edu/
[S12]: https://www.today.duke.edu/2013/09/dkuapproval
[S13]: https://news.dukekunshan.edu.cn/campus-news/https-dukekunshan-edu-cn-en-dku-board-meeting-held-wuhan-university/