United States President Donald Trump has criticised the Joe Biden administration of allegedly misusing taxpayer funds, citing over $8 million spent on transgender-related experiments involving mice.
His remarks quickly sparked debate, with major news outlets fact-checking his claims.
However, a review of federally funded research projects confirmed that the National Institutes of Health (NIH) indeed allocated millions to studies examining the effects of hormone therapy on mice.
According to available grant records, the NIH provided funding for various research projects related to gender and hormone therapy in animal models.
“These studies, conducted by research institutions across the country, explore topics ranging from reproductive health to immune responses in the context of hormone treatments,” the White House stated.
Among the projects funded are $455,000 for a study titled “A Mouse Model to Test the Effects of Gender-Affirming Hormone Therapy on HIV Vaccine-Induced Immune Responses,” $2.5m for “Reproductive Consequences of Steroid Hormone Administration.”
Researchers noted that “these mice manifest defects in ovarian architecture and have altered folliculogenesis.”
Also, $299,940 was also used for research on “Gender-Affirming Testosterone Therapy on Breast Cancer Risk and Treatment Outcomes.” The study compared breast cancer risk in female mice receiving testosterone therapy versus those that do not, $735,113 to examine the “Microbiome Mediated Effects of Gender-Affirming Hormone Therapy in Mice.”
Trump also alleged that Biden used $1.2m for a study on “Androgen Effects on the Reproductive Neuroendocrine Axis,” which investigated the role of androgens in reproductive hormone regulation using transgenic mice, and $3.1m for research on “Gonadal Hormones as Mediators of Sex and Gender Influences in Asthma.”
Scientists involved in the project stated, “We will study the contributions of estrogens to HDM-induced asthma outcomes using male and female gonadectomized mice treated with estradiol.”
In total, the projects amount to $8,290,053 in federal funding.
Trump’s remarks have added fuel to ongoing political debates about government spending and scientific research priorities. “The Biden administration is wasting millions on transgender experiments on mice while Americans struggle with inflation and rising costs,” Trump declared.
Meanwhile, media outlets and fact-checkers have responded by analysing the studies in question. While some experts argued that such research was essential for understanding hormone therapies’ broader medical implications, critics contend that taxpayer dollars should be directed toward more immediate public health concerns.
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