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Troops, key health workers to be first to receive U.S. bird flu shots
Government unveils plan which creates four categories of people to be vaccinated in case of pandemic outbreak; the top tier of each category will be vaccinated first
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Palm Beach County prepares for bioterror attack
New foot soldiers in the war against bioterror attack in a Florida county: Country clubs and condo board presidents, who will help distribute antibiotics to the county’s 1.3 million people in 48 hours
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New alliance aims to offer pathogen-free food
VeriPrime alliance — it is an alliance of livestock and poultry producers, packing companies, and retail and food service vendors — says it can market meat that is 99.9999998% free of deadly pathogens
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$20 million contract to develop inhaled therapy for plague, tularemia
Florida-based Nanotherapeutics to develop gentamicin, an injectable broad-spectrum antibiotic used for pneumonic plague and tularemia; U.S. wants an inhaled version for easier application in the aftermath of bioterror attack
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Miniscule solar cells would enable ultramicroscopic technology
Harvard team develops solar cells 200 hundred times thinner than a human hair; source of power for ultramicroscopic technology now available; team leaders says one of the first application would be in monitoring bioterrorism
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Food importers to guarantee their imports meet safety, health standards
A proposal for screening imported foods would require American companies to certify that their foreign suppliers meet U.S. standards and would reward suppliers who undertake quality-monitoring programs
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U.S. government to intensify fight against industrial espionage
U.S. government launches a broad campaign to thwart foreign government and terrorist organizations from stealing sensitive U.S. technology; chief culprits: China, Iran
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Centralization of food production makes nation vulnerable
CDC says centralization of foor production and processing is the major cause of outbreaks of food-borne illness; centralization offers an inviting opportunity for terrorists to do harm
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More intensive, collaborative effort needed to prepare for bioterrorism
Medical countermeasures to combat biological weaponry will rely on the ability of scientists to develop potent vaccines and therapeutics that have broad activity and to do so rapidly
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Two major food safety laws are ineffective
Of the many food safety laws proposed, two were passed — Bioterrorism Act of 2002 and the facility registration database; trouble is, neither is very effective
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Morphotek in $2.7 million contract to develop monoclonal antibodies
Pennsylvania company to work with the Army’s research institute to develop therapeutic monoclonal antibodies against potential biological warfare threats
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Worries about safety of U.S. biodefense labs
Since 2003, U.S. labs handling the world’s deadliest germs and toxins have experienced more than 100 accidents; as research into bioterrorism intesifies, number of accidents grows
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Preparations under way for 2011 review of biological weapons treaty
Representatives of 90 states meet in Vienna as part of an effort to bridge differences among countries about the best way to bolster the Biological Weapons Convention
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Ebola continues to spread in Congo
Lab tests confirm that number of cases now stands at twenty-four; WHO, MSF say outbreak is not yet under control
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The state of biodefense: I
In wargames of a terrorist biological attack on a U.S. city, it was predicted that an infectious agent such as smallpox could spread to 3 million people throughout the continental U.S. within 12 weeks of an attack; DoD, DHS work on early detection gear
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The long view
A Shining Star in a Contentious Legacy: Could Marty Makary Be the Saving Grace of a Divisive Presidency?
While much of the Trump administration has sparked controversy, the FDA’s consumer-first reforms may be remembered as its brightest legacy. From AI-driven drug reviews to bans on artificial dyes, the FDA’s agenda resonates with the public in ways few Trump-era policies have.