Recent News

By Region: North America

Pros and Cons Debated of Increasing Biosecurity in Labs Working With Engineered Bird Flu Viruses

(Science Now) Four papers published today in the online, open access journal mBio offer wide-ranging perspectives about the biocontainment facilities that researchers should use to work with bird flu viruses that can transmit in mammals.

March 7, 2012
| Filed under Europe, North America, Biosafety, International, Policy & Initiatives, and Research
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Scientist Could Have Shifted Tack on Bird Flu Study Danger: Experts

(Global Security Newswire) Remarks last month by the top scientist on a Dutch team that produced a more transmissible version of the avian flu virus have prompted specialists and others to ask whether his recent characterizations of the study diverge significantly from his statements on the project last year, the Center for Infectious Disease Research Read More »

March 7, 2012
| Filed under Europe, North America, International, Policy & Initiatives, and Research
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U.S. Central Command Chief Concerned About Syrian WMD

(Global Security Newswire) The head of U.S. Central Command is expected this week to voice concerns about Syrian weapons of mass destruction, the Associated Press reported. Marine Gen. James Mattis will tell members of the House and Senate Armed Services committees that the Bashar Assad regime has “substantial” biological and chemical weapons complex, according to Read More »

March 7, 2012
| Filed under Middle East, North America, and Biological Weapons
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Government Studies Inconclusive on Health Impact of Chemical Contaminants at Fort Detrick, Md.

(The National Academies) Two government-issued studies are unable to demonstrate whether people were harmed by groundwater contaminated with toxic pollutants from Area B of Fort Detrick, Md., says a new report by the National Research Council. Furthermore, it is unlikely that additional studies could establish a link, because data on early exposures were not collected Read More »

March 6, 2012
| Filed under North America, Policy & Initiatives, and Public Health
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New H5N1 viruses: How to balance risk of escape with benefits of research?

(EurekAlert!) In the controversy surrounding the newly developed strains of avian H5N1 flu viruses, scientists and policy makers are struggling with one question in particular: what level of biosafety is best for studying these potentially lethal strains of …