See what we’re reading this week at Global Biodefense on topics including biological threat attribution capability shortfalls, post-hurricane mosquito-borne health threats, and key findings on chemical weapons use in Syria.
POLICY, PRACTICES & POLITICS
- Secretary Tillerson lauds Global Health Security Agenda (CIDRAP)
- Culture of biosafety, biosecurity, and responsible conduct in the life sciences (PR)
- Scott Gottlieb rocketed to the top of FDA. He may keep rising (STAT)
- WHO’s new deputy director general spells out her priorities (Scroll.in)
- U.S. not prepared to identify perpetrators of biological crimes (BRSTOB)
- Senate confirms No. 2 spot at HHS, days after Price resigns (The Hill)
BIOPREPAREDNESS
- Overlap between trauma systems and hospital disaster preparedness (TBN)
- Europe needs to prepare for the coming epidemic – Prof. Yves Lévy (Horizon)
- Reasonable doubts: Foreseeing failures in WMD security (Pandora Report)
CHEMICAL WEAPONS
- Chemical weapons watchdog found sarin used in March Syria attack (Reuters)
- Key finding on use of chemical weapons in Syria (HRW)
MEDICAL COUNTERMEASURES
- Project BioShield adds Ebola vaccines, drugs to US stockpile (CIDRAP)
- Flu vaccine: NHS patients wanted to test ‘universal’ jab (BBC)
- Promising Zika drug prevents infection in monkeys (SD Union Tribune)
- Oral cholera vaccines cost $6 per person, offers up to 3 years protection (TRF)
- Vaccine against Zika virus must remain a priority (The Lancet)
- Study identifies factors that may lower flu vaccine protection (CIDRAP)
- Approval of cheaper Hepatitis C drug will likely expand treatment (NPR)
SELECT AGENTS
- U.S. invests $170 million in late-stage Ebola vaccines, drugs (Reuters)
- Ebola survivors affected by variety of neurologic symptoms (Medscape)
- Prevalence of Bacillus anthracis spores in soil of district Badin (JoAHaP)
OUTBREAK NEWS & THREAT SURVEILLANCE
- Infectious disease surveillance update (The Lancet)
- Health experts zero in on camels to fight deadly MERS virus (Reuters)
- CDC: 9 more H3N2v cases reported in Maryland, Michigan (CIDRAP)
- Hepatitis A marches through San Diego’s homeless community (STAT)
- Fearsome plague epidemic strikes Madagascar (NY Times)
- One million unvaccinated Venezuelan kids vulnerable in measles outbreak (Reuters)
- In Harvey’s wake, health officials watch for West Nile (STAT)
- Health officials watching mosquitoes in Texas after Harvey (ABC News)
- FDA approves test to detect Zika virus in blood donations (Rare DR)
RESEARCH & TECH
- Do pathogens gain virulence as hosts become more resistant? (The Scientist)
- Seasonal outbreak of emerging STEC O55:H7 Stx2a (Eurosurveillance)
- Giving bacteria needles to fight intestinal disease (NIH)
SPECIAL INTEREST
- CRISPR gets snubbed again by Nobel Prize Committee (Labiotech.eu)
- CDC wants to use blockchain as weapon against deadly epidemics (Futurism)
- Behind the scenes with Amy Maxmen on Ebola reporting (Pulitzer Center)
- The chicken experiment that shook the world (Undark)
- Unseen enemy (The Lancet)
