Recent News

By Category: Policy & Initiatives

The End of Days for H5N1 Moratorium?

(The Scientist) After a 2-day meeting in Bethesda, Maryland, this week, government officials have finally reached a consensus on a policy to review requests to research the potentially dangerous H5N1 influenza virus. The new policy could end a longstanding debate that began when two research groups published studies showing their ability to create viruses that Read More »

December 24, 2012
| Filed under North America, Agents & Toxins, Policy & Initiatives, Public Health, and Research
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Experts to Vet Proposed U.S. Rules on Bird Flu Studies

(Global Security Newswire) An Obama administration proposal to conduct special evaluations of federal grant requests for weapon-sensitive avian influenza research is set to go under the microscope this week at a gathering of public health officials and experts from around the world. The two-day event — scheduled to begin on Monday at the main campus Read More »

December 18, 2012
| Filed under North America, Agents & Toxins, Agriculture, International, Policy & Initiatives, Public Health, and Research
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Weapon-Usable Tech Seen Challenging Bioweapons Convention

(Global Security Newswire) An array of advances in science and technology threaten to undermine the Biological Weapons Convention by enabling a nefarious actor to engineer disease agents to be more virulent or resistant to medical countermeasures, treaty signatories said on Friday. Growing capabilities to render pathogens more communicable, immune system-resistant, or honed to specific targets Read More »

December 17, 2012
| Filed under Europe, North America, Biological Weapons, International, and Policy & Initiatives
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With new rules, few public health labs to handle riskiest agents

(CIDRAP) With tougher security requirements set to take effect next April, few state public health laboratories plan to maintain stocks of certain pathogens considered most tempting to bioterrorists, according to the Association of Public Health Laboratories (APHL) and officials with state labs. Pathogens such as Bacillus anthracis, Ebola virus, and several others have been designated Read More »

December 14, 2012
| Filed under North America, Agents & Toxins, Policy & Initiatives, Public Health, and Research
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USDA Updates Food Safety Research Priorities

(Global Biodefense) USDA’s Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS) has updated research priorities relevant to FSIS regulated products. The list provides useful guidance for grant preparation to agencies that fund food safety research, such as the USDA’s National Institute of Food and Agriculture (NIFA), and for academic researchers and private foundations.