Recent News

By Region: North America

Producers are on front lines of identifying infectious diseases

(Tri-State Neighbor) “While foodborne outbreaks of zoonotic diseases continue to challenge public health authorities, the human cases of some of the more severe diseases – such as anthrax, tularemia or plague – are extremely rare,” said Marty Zaluski, state veterinarian …

January 31, 2012
| Filed under North America, Agents & Toxins, and Agriculture
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Experts Weigh in on Bird Flu Research

(PBS NewsHour) Earlier this month, the scientists who altered the H5N1 virus to create a more contagious strain that’s transmissible between ferrets, agreed to a temporary moratorium, due to safety concerns. That decision has, if anything, intensified the debate. What began as a question on whether scientific journals should publish the complete research has grown Read More »

January 31, 2012
| Filed under Europe, North America, Agents & Toxins, International, Policy & Initiatives, Public Health, and Research
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How Fake Bioterrorism Attacks Became a Real Problem

(Slate Magazine) Ever since letters filled with anthrax spores killed five people in the United States and sickened 17 in the fall of 2001, the discovery of white powder in packages and mail has come to evoke instant fear of a biological attack. The bank called 911, and police and firefighters rushed to the building. Read More »

January 31, 2012
| Filed under North America and Bioterrorism
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A hinge moment for the BWC?

(Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists) Although it was an eleventh-hour decision, the Seventh Biological and Toxin Weapons Convention (BWC) Review Conference in Geneva did manage to produce a consensus final document this past December. As the saying goes, “a win is a win,” and in the end the final document — adopted with less than Read More »

January 31, 2012
| Filed under Africa, Asia/Pacific, Europe, Middle East, North America, South America, South Asia, Biological Weapons, International, and Policy & Initiatives
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International Partnerships Focus on Preventing Animal Diseases

(Agricultural Research) Rift Valley fever, East Coast fever and foot-and-mouth disease are three devastating diseases that harm livestock and threaten the livelihood of poor farmers. To help keep animals alive, healthy and productive, scientists at the Agricultural Research …