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WHO challenges China over new bird flu strain
Government denies emergence of new strain, but WHO and other authorities disagree; information sharing at issue; WHO hopes China will soon agree to upload gene sequences to a public data base
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Salmonella outbreak prompts a review of detection and food safety products
We take a look back on our reporting for the year and offer readers a close look at some innovative approaches; Warnex receives CDC approval for detection system; Department of Agriculture steps up inspection and reporting regimes; Alto-Shaam offers food monitoring technology
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Expert says surgical masks a simple but effective pandemic response
As compared to respirators, citizens find surgical masks comfortable and would therefor be more likely to use them; aerosol transmission the leading cause of infection; price is 10 cents per unit, but enterprising firms should note that U.S. demand alone could reach 20 billion
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Achaogen announces $24.7 million DTRA deal to combat anthrax and plague
Four-year deal with Defense Threat Reduction Agency will focus on inhibiting antibiotic-resistant strains; once weakened, bacteria are vulnerable to fluoroquinolones and other antibacterial drugs; deal comes in the wake of a succesfully completed Series B funding round
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Listening in on bacteria “conversations” help in efforts to keep deadly infections in check
There may be a debate about the legality of eavesdropping by the NSA on U.S. phone conversation, but few would question listening in on conversations among bacteria – conversations carried out by chemical signals bacteria use to communicate with each other – because these conversations give us knowledge on how to block deadly infections
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Judge allows Boston biosafety lab to continue construction
Level 4 facility will study deadly microbes such as ebola and anthrax, and so local residents are reasonably nervous; court allows NIH-sponsored program to continue while environmental and public health concerns are reevaluated; possibility left open for a future injunction
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Biowarfare threat a business opportunity for laboratory industry
Planned expansion of secure bioweapons labs creates a demand for equipment; water testing devices a critical need; automated cyanide analyzers, total organic content, and purge-and-trap sample concentrators among other specialized tools
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PharmAthene and Medarex receive DoD grant for anthrax treatment
Unlike antibiotics, the companies’ monoclonal antibody approach should be effective days after exposure; an effective attack will be surreptitious, so the need for long-term treatment is great
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University of Minnesota seeks grant extension for food and bioterror efforts
National Center for Food Protection and Defense nears the end of a three year grant; center a leader in the field with innovative approaches in sensor and analytic technology, data management, and predictive software
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Court delays opening of California bioterrorism defense lab, citing safety concerns
They say about some do-gooders that they love humanity — it is people they don’t like; the same with biodefense labs: Communities love the idea of more jobs, more money, and more development which these biodefense labs bring, they just don’t like the associated safety risks; in the latest case, a court puts on hold the construction of a lab at Lawrence Livermore
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E. coli outbreak renews skirmishes along old war front
The recent E. coli outbreak renewed the fighting between supporters of the chemical fertilizer industry and advocates of organic farming; the former point to the outbreak as proof of the dangers inherent in relying on manure as fertilizer; the latter said that if manure is the culprit, then it is because of the rapid growth of animal feedlots which generate huge quantities of tainted manure — and that tainted manure is the result of feeding feedlot cattle grain, instead of their natural food — pasture grass; the digestive system and acid balance of ruminants evolved over thousands of years to break down grass, not high-production, refined rations; organic livestock, raised on pasture, have a healthy digestive system which kills the E. coli 0157 pathogen
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Livermore Lab develops new pathogen detection system; seeks partners to commercialize
Scientists at the Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory develop an autonomous pathogen detection system which boasts many advantages over existing products; the lab is now seeking industrial partners to commercialize the invention
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Universal flu vaccination could spur anti-bird flu efforts
Studies find flu vaccines are not as effective as once believed; no effect on death rates among elderly; universal vaccination closes the gap by stopping transmission from the young; building up laboratory infrastructure now could pay dividends in the future
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The long view
What We’ve Learned from Survivors of the Atomic Bombs
Q&A with Dr. Preetha Rajaraman, New Vice Chair for the Radiation Effects Research Foundation in Hiroshima and Nagasaki, Japan.
Combatting the Measles Threat Means Examining the Reasons for Declining Vaccination Rates
Measles was supposedly eradicated in Canada more than a quarter century ago. But today, measles is surging. The cause of this resurgence is declining vaccination rates.
Social Networks Are Not Effective at Mobilizing Vaccination Uptake
The persuasive power of social networks is immense, but not limitless. Vaccine preferences, based on the COVID experience in the United States, proved quite insensitive to persuasion, even through friendship networks.
Vaccine Integrity Project Says New FDA Rules on COVID-19 Vaccines Show Lack of Consensus, Clarity
Sidestepping both the FDA’s own Vaccines and Related Biological Products Advisory Committee and the CDC’s Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP), two Trump-appointed FDA leaders penned an opinion piece in the New England Journal of Medicine to announce new, more restrictive, COVID-19 vaccine recommendations. Critics say that not seeking broad input into the new policy, which would help FDA to understand its implications, feasibility, and the potential for unintended consequences, amounts to policy by proclamation.
Are We Ready for a ‘DeepSeek for Bioweapons’?
Anthropic’s Claude 4 is a warning sign: AI that can help build bioweapons is coming, and could be widely available soon. Steven Adler writes that we need to be prepared for the consequences: “like a freely downloadable ‘DeepSeek for bioweapons,’ available across the internet, loadable to the computer of any amateur scientist who wishes to cause mass harm. With Anthropic’s Claude Opus 4 having finally triggered this level of safety risk, the clock is now ticking.”
“Tulsi Gabbard as US Intelligence Chief Would Undermine Efforts Against the Spread of Chemical and Biological Weapons”: Expert
The Senate, along party lines, last week confirmed Tulsi Gabbard as Director of National intelligence. One expert on biological and chemical weapons says that Gabbard’s “longstanding history of parroting Russian propaganda talking points, unfounded claims about Syria’s use of chemical weapons, and conspiracy theories all in efforts to undermine the quality of the community she now leads” make her confirmation a “national security malpractice.”