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By Category: Biotechnology

Testimony of the Honorable Tara O’Toole, MD, MPH before the US Senate

(DHS) Ten years after anthrax was mailed to members of the US Congress and to media organizations, dozens of policy, intelligence, and technical reports have affirmed the viability of terrorist groups using biological weapons to cause death, suffering, …

October 19, 2011
| Filed under North America, Agriculture, Biological Weapons, Biotechnology, Bioterrorism, Countermeasures, International, Policy & Initiatives, Public Health, and Research
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Why the Anthrax Murders Are Re-Surfacing 10 Years Later

(Gizmodo) Three scientists who recently published their concerns in the Journal of Bioterrorism and Biodefense say that the trace amounts of tin may have been used as a coating to make the anthrax easier to inhale, and that Ivins didn't have the skill required …

October 18, 2011
| Filed under North America, Agents & Toxins, Biological Weapons, Biotechnology, Bioterrorism, Policy & Initiatives, and Research
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Lasers Could Quickly ID Bacterial Threats: Researcher

(GSN Daily News) A Canadian researcher said he has developed a system for using laser technology to quickly identify dangerous bacteria such as anthrax, Postmedia News reported on Thursday (see GSN, Feb. 14). “It’s just a completely different way of looking at how to identify bacteria,” said Steven Rehse, an assistant physics professor at the Read More »

October 17, 2011
| Filed under North America, Agents & Toxins, Biotechnology, and Research
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BARDA Strategic Plan 2011-2016 Released

Over the last decade, our nation has responded to deliberate biological attacks – the mailing of anthrax-laden letters – and severe naturally occurring disease outbreaks including SARS and the 2009-H1N1 influenza pandemic. On October 4, 2011, the Biomedical Advanced Research and Development Authority (BARDA) issued the BARDA Strategic Plan 2011-2016, which articulates the guiding principles, Read More »

October 6, 2011
| Filed under North America, Biotechnology, Policy & Initiatives, and Public Health
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U.S. Biodefenses Improve, But New Threats Develop

(GSN Daily News) Biodefense officials in the United States are concerned about the implications of evolving synthetic biology capabilities even as they note the significant strides the nation has made in the last decade in preparing for a potential disease-based attack, USA Today reported on Friday (see GSN, Feb. 11). “We are certainly better prepared Read More »