See what we’re reading this week at Global Biodefense on topics including CRISPR and the bioweapons convention, Biosecurity 2025, anthrax outbreak in Russia and more…
BIOPREPAREDNESS
- Alberta NATO exercise focuses on attacks using biological, chemical weapons (GN)
- New Zealand’s Biosecurity 2025 initiative (MPI) and GIA partner support (GIA)
- Pakistan: Need to implement bio-safety and security regulations (Express Tribune)
- How one scientist is tackling biosecurity in West Africa (CRDF Global)
- Biosecurity and non-communicable diseases (Journal of Bioterrorism & Biodefense)
- Nigeria: Lagos government, others hold summit on infectious diseases (All Africa)
POLICY & POLICTICS
- Can the bioweapons convention survive CRISPR? (Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists)
- Senate Dems: Cancel recess to deal with Zika emergency (Politico)
- In Florida Zika probe, federal scientists kept at arm’s length (HuffPost)
- The world’s great religions and their neglected tropical diseases (PLOS NTD)
SELECT AGENTS
- 1,500 reindeer dead, 40 humans hospitalized amid anthrax outbreak (VICE)
- Merck Ebola vaccine wins speedier reviews by regulators (STAT)
- Post-exposure treatment of Ebola using antibody-based therapeutic (Nature)
- Russian authorities evacuate nomads after anthrax outbreak (ABC News)
- Francisella tularensis – the evolving view from the petri dish (JoB&B)
- Surface plasmon resonance sensing of botulinum neurotoxin A (JoB&B)
- Radicalized health care workers and risk of Ebola as a bioterror weapon (JoB&B)
MEDICAL COUNTERMEASURES
- Contrary dengue vaccine response hints at possible problems with Zika (CIDRAP)
- Nasal bacteria pump out a potential new antibiotic that kills MRSA (SA)
- With superbug scourge looming, global group bets on biotechs to turn tide (STAT)
- Governments back Prokarium for Zika and bioterrorism vaccines (Pharma Letter)
- Scientists find potential new antibiotic, right under their noses (Reuters)
OUTBREAK NEWS & THREAT SURVEILLANCE
- U.S. health officials update Zika transmission and testing guidance (Reuters)
- Puzzling case distribution suggests Zika not only factor in microcephaly surge (Nature)
- 40 years later, scientist who discovered Legionnaires’ still learning lessons (Newsworks)
- Possible case of Angolan yellow fever in Brazil as vaccine trial launches (CIDRAP)
- Seroprevalence of Q fever and brucellosis in Laos (AJTMH)
CHEMICAL THREATS
- Hyderabad: Workshop to keep tab on hazardous chemical weapons (Deccan)
- Chemical insecurity: overview of the threat to the chemical sector (CBRNe Portal)
RESEARCH & TECH
- Ecologists create a framework for predicting new infectious diseases (Phys.org)
- Your phone could help cure Zika — and TB, Ebola and other infections (Forbes)
- Study shows wild birds not long-term reservoir for high-path H5 strains (CIDRAP)
- Pocket NGS can now select DNA fragments for faster sequencing (LabBioTech.eu)
- New Hendra virus tests to slash wait for results (Brisbane Times)
- K-State infects mosquitoes with Zika, hoping to unravel mysteries (Kansas City Star)
- MIT team develops portable pharmacies (Boston Herald)
SPECIAL INTEREST
- Containment: the good, the bad, and the contagious (Pandora Report)
- Blitzing your household bugs in the name of biosecurity (Phys.org)
- Check your senses for biosecurity with poultry (MSU Extension)
- Spillover – Zika, Ebola and beyond (PBS)
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