The bioscience revolution & the biological weapons threat: levers & interventions

Abstract

In December 2008, the US Commission on the Prevention of Weapons of Mass Destruction Proliferation and Terrorism, released a report, World At Risk. The Report points to the fact that, not only is the use of a weapon of mass destruction in a terrorist attack before the end of 2013, more likely than not, but also to the fact that terrorists are more likely to be able to obtain and use biological weapons than nuclear. This paper examines the recommendations of the report in the context of the historic and geopolitical changes, in particular globalization. The authors highlight the "dual-use" dilemma, as described in the report, as the paradoxical use of technology developed for the benefit of mankind being used for sinister purposes. The mitigation of such a threat lies in broad stakeholder involvement and cooperation, including non-state actors, governments and the bio-tech industry itself. The importance of vigilance measures within the life science community is emphasized and, the authors propose, could include a web-based didactic course in bioterrorism and weapons of mass destruction identification. The site could outline safety protocols, have detailed disaster management tutorials, and could be specifically tailored for different subsets of industry and health professionals. The paper concludes with an endorsement of a multi-pronged approach including strong international guidelines and intelligence cooperation and preparatory measures such as the wide-spread use of detection systems as well as diagnostic decision support systems for bioterrorism detection at the local level.

The Assessment of Knowledge of Organisational - Administrative Procedures in the Case of a Bioterrorist Threat in Selected Environmental Populations

“…Once they are released, biological agents may lead to a significant number of deaths and infections. [6,8]. Hence, in a situation of a risk of a bio-terrorist attack it is vital to notify competent institutions, up to the highest levels of authority, to deal with the discussed problem.…”

“…The most frightening form of use is in aerosols or via the application of an agent to ventilation systems. This causes fast and mass infections in the population, as well as high mortality [7,8,9]. In the fight against the effects of an attack, early detection of a biological agent is crucial.…”

Governing 'dual-use' research in Canada: A policy review

“…technology, equipment, and facilities that could be used for both civilian and military purposes. (Miller 2009: 23) The focus has been on the downstream products of research in the nuclear sciences (Evans 2010), in information technology, and more recently in the biosciences (D'Agostino and Martin 2009). Much less attention has been paid to upstream elements of research (e.g.…”

Planning and preparing for public health threats at airports

“…Adding to the risk associated with the emergence of zoonotic outbreaks, is a growing concern that non-state actors will deploy a biological weapon in an act of terrorism. The US Commission on the Prevention of Weapons of Mass Destruction Proliferation and Terrorism in 2008 stated that it is more likely than not that a biological weapon will be used by a non-state actor in the foreseeable future [ 11 ]. Since the publication of that report we have seen the advent of CRISPR-Cas9, an affordable ready-to-use gene editing technology [ 12 ].…”