Tag: chemical weaons

Pandora Report 3.10.2017

by spopescu, posted in Pandora Report

Looking for a great podcast on CRISPR? Check out RadioLab – they also have a captivating one on patient zeroes throughout history!

Summer Workshop on Pandemics, Bioterrorism, and Global Health Security: From Anthrax to Zika 
If you’re looking to learn more about global health security, synethic biology, biosecurity, and what exactly “biodefense” entails, you’ll want to mark your calendar for the GMU Biodefense three-day, non-credit summer workshop on July 17-19, 2017! Participants will look at the challenges facing the world at the intersection of national security, public health, and the life sciences. Instructors for the workshop range from FBI special agents to biodefense professors and USAMRIID commanders. The workshop will look at the spectrum of biological threats – including naturally occurring disease outbreaks such as SARS, Zika, and Ebola, lapses in biosafety, dual-use research of concern, and the threat of bioterrorism. From now until May 1st, you can take advantage of the early bird registration discount!

Glaring Gaps: America Needs A Biodefense Upgrade
GMU biodefense PhD alum Daniel M. Gerstein is emphasizing the need to strengthen American biodefense capabilities. “Recent legislation has called for a comprehensive biodefense strategy. If carried out in a thorough and systematic way, and properly funded, this will be a great improvement for the country and the world.” Gerstein notes that while the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2017 called for a joint biodefense effort, there is still a desperate need for a structured and systematic approach. Perhaps one of the biggest issues Gerstein found is the current view of biodefense as a series of programs. Approaching global health security threat requires us to view biodefense as a complex system, not a series of programs. To fix the glaring gaps in U.S. biodefense efforts, he notes that any remedy will have to accept the complexity of the problem and that there is no single panacea. Internal coordination, improvement of diagnostics and treatment, and technology management are all things that must be addressed to strengthen American biodefense. “Export controls in the United States, for example, actually hinder international collaboration. Exchanging pathogen strains used in the development of medical countermeasures, diagnostics, and bio-surveillance remains difficult – even, at times, for close international partners. In one case, the United States was attempting to share a strain of the Ebola-Reston pathogen with the government of Australia, but export laws prevented this sharing, so the strain was instead acquired from the Philippines, where the strain originated.” While we’ve made great strides since the Amerithrax attacks, there is much to be done to create a systematic and resilient biodefense strategy.

Chemical Weapons Reportedly Used in Mosul
The WHO has recently activated an emergency response plan with several partners to help treat twelve people for potential exposure to chemical weapons in Iraq. “Lise Grande, the UN humanitarian coordinator in Iraq, called for an investigation. ‘This is horrible. If the alleged use of chemical weapons is confirmed, this is a serious violation of international humanitarian law and a war crime, regardless of who the targets or the victims of the attacks are,’ she said in a statement.” Many are pointing to ISIL as the likely culprit since they hold the majority of west Mosul and have a history of rudimentary use of chemical weapons.

China’s Growing Bird Flu Worries  
Despite a recent surge in human A(H7N9) cases, the WHO has stated that the risk of an epidemic remains low. Even with this release, the development of two distinct strains in a disease that has a mortality rate hovering around 30%, has many worried. “That will probably force development of a second small stockpile of emergency vaccine to be rolled out if the virus becomes more transmissible and threatens to turn into a pandemic, a scientist at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said. Flu specialists from around the world gathered in Geneva this week to assess the global influenza situation and discuss with vaccine companies which viral strains should be in next winter’s flu shots. China has had 460 lab-confirmed human cases of H7N9 bird flu this winter, said Dr. Wenqing Zhang, head of the W.H.O.’s global influenza program. That is the most in any flu season since the first human case was found in 2013.” Interestingly, around 7% of the new H7N9 cases were resistant to drugs like Tamiflu, which has many researchers working to make a H7N9 seed vaccine, including a secondary one due to the split strains. Coming on the heels of this outbreak, US officials have announced that highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI) was found in a commercial poultry farm in Tennessee. 700 birds died from infection and almost 73,000 were destroyed. The farm is a contracted supplier of chicken meat for the U.S.’s biggest supplier, Tyson, which released an announcement on March 5th regarding testing of local birds, etc.

Global Health Security Index Development
Johns Hopkins Center for Health Security recently received a grant from the Open Philanthropy Project and the Robertson Foundation to coordinate with the Nuclear Threat Initiative (NTI) and the Economist Intelligence Unit (EIU) to develop a Global Health Security Index. “The mission of the index is to encourage progress towards a world that is capable of preventing epidemics of international impact (either natural, accidental or deliberate) from arising, or, should, prevention fail, respond quickly to contain them.” The first phase of the project will aim at developing framework that can measure a country’s level of health security. While the GHSA and JEE are processes to increase transparency, preparedness, and country capabilities, the goal of this index is to fill the gaps in motivation and also the factors that are not in the hands of the health sector.

Antimicrobial Resistance in Pets: Are We Ignoring A Looming Threat? 
GMU biodefense PhD student Saskia Popescu is looking at the threat of antibiotic resistance, but from a somewhat forgotten patient population – our pets. The recent WHO list of worrisome antimicrobial resistant bugs has drawn a lot of attention to the growing threat of an antibiotic apocalypse however, sometimes it takes a personal experience to look outside the box. Pulling from experiences of dealing with drug resistance in her dog to the loss of SeaWorld’s controversial orca, Tilikum, Popescu notes the rising threat of AMR brewing in domesticated animals. Sadly, it seems that many veterinarians and infectious diseases researchers have been drawing attention to the role of household animals in antimicrobial resistance and yet, just like the human issue, it’s not getting the attention it deserves. In her article, Popescu points to the need to start addressing the full circle of microbial resistance, starting with our furry friends.

Stories You May Have Missed:

  • Constraining Norms for Cyber Warfare Are Unlikely – GMU Biodefense PhD alum, Brian M. Mazanec, is talking to the Georgetown Journal of International Affairs about the realities of norms for cyber warfare. The question of whether constraining international norms for cyber warfare will emerge and thrive is of paramount importance to the unfolding age of cyber conflict. Some scholars think that great powers will inevitably cooperate and establish rules, norms, and standards for cyberspace. While it is true that increased competition may create incentives for cooperation on constraining norms, Mazanec argues that norm evolution theory for emerging-technology weapons leads one to conclude that constraining norms for cyber warfare will face many challenges and may never successfully emerge.
  • ABSA International Webinar- Behaving Safely in the Laboratory: Understanding Complexities of Building and Sustaining a Culture of Safety–  ABSA is hosting a 2-hour webinar session for three days. “The webinar will be offered Monday, April 3; Wednesday, April 5 and Friday, April 7, 2017.  Millions of dollars on engineering.  Thousands of dollars on PPE.  Hundreds of hours spent writing SOPs – and in one instant all of these controls can be negated with one inappropriate behavior.  Behavior is the bridge between written plans and desired outcomes.  But what does it take to behave safely?  Day 1 will focus on what it takes for an individual to behave safely – as behavior requires five critical items – and without these items – sustained behavior cannot occur. Day 2 will focus on motivating behavior – the differences between leadership and management – and the motivating factors which are extrinsic, systemic, and intrinsic. Day 3 will focus on building and sustaining a ONE SAFE culture – blending the efforts of the workforce, leadership, and safety officials.”
  • High Flu Activity Throughout the U.S. – The CDC has warned that the U.S. is still experiencing high flu activity in all regions. This flu season has seen elevated pediatric mortality, with six reported last week, bringing the total to forty pediatric deaths. “The CDC said there have been more hospitalizations and clinical visits for influenza-like illness (ILI) at this point in the flu season than in 2012-13, another season when H3N2 strain predominated. The CDC said the cumulative overall rate is 39.4 hospitalizations per 100,000 people. During the 2012-13 flu season, the rate was (38.2 per 100,000).”

 

Pandora Report 9.13.14

by juliadhomstad, posted in Pandora Report

This week we look at a report that claims DHS is not prepared for a pandemic and information about Chemical Weapons in Syria, still. We also have an Ebola update, and if you’re interested in learning more about the West African outbreak, join us Wednesday for our September Biodefense Policy Seminar!

Have a great weekend!

Homeland ill-prepared for Pandemic, Doesn’t Even Have Enough Drugs to Protect Secret Service

In a recently released report, the Office of the Inspector General claims that “the Department of Homeland Security may not be able to provide sufficient pandemic preparedness supplies to its employees to continue operations during a pandemic.” DHS, however, has disagreed with much of the report claiming it misrepresents the agency’s preparedness for an outbreak.

The Washington Times—“One of the biggest problems, investigators said, is that most of the stockpiles are of antiviral drugs that are expiring. By the end of 2015, the IG said that 81 percent of Homeland Security’s stockpiled antiviral medication will be past its shelf life. In addition, 84 percent of the agency’s stock of hand sanitizer has already expired, some batches by as long as four years, inspectors said.”

Watchdog Says Chlorine Gas Used as a Chemical Weapon in Syria

The Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons reports that chlorine gas was used “systematically and repeatedly” as a weapon in northern Syria earlier this year. U.S. officials say that the Assad regime is the only force capable of launching such an attack. Even after the destruction of Syria’s chemical weapons stockpiles, chlorine is not a forbidden substance under the CWC. However, the use of any chemical as a weapon is prohibited by the CWC. This news comes among concerns that any hidden weapons stockpiles may fall into the hands of terrorist or extremist groups, like ISIS

The Wall Street Journal—“The OPCW team traveled to the sites of attacks and interviewed victims, doctors and witnesses. According to the report, victims’ symptoms and the effect of the gas led the mission ‘to conclude with a high degree of confidence that chlorine, either pure or in mixture, is the toxic chemical in question.’”

This Week in Ebola

Another American Ebola patient was sent to Emory University in Atlanta for treatment and American Ebola survivor Dr. Kent Brantly donated blood to the American patient, Dr. Rick Sacra, who is being treated in Nebraska. The thought is that Dr. Brantly’s blood will help confer passive immunity to Dr. Sacra. On last Sunday’s Meet the Press, President Obama pledged U.S. military assistance in setting up isolation units and providing security for health workers in West Africa but House Republicans indicated they would provide less than half of the White House’s requested funding for fighting Ebola. The Bill and Melinda Gates Foundations has pledged to contribute $50 million to support emergency efforts to contain the outbreak in West Africa. There were reports this week of a U.S. air marshal who was injected with a syringe at the Lagos Airport in Nigeria. Though it appears that the syringe was not infected with Ebola, it has caused fears that Ebola could be used as a weapon. All of this comes at a time when disease modelers at Northeastern University predict that as many as 10,000 cases of Ebola could be detected by the end of the month and there have been 60 cases resulting in 35 deaths from the Ebola outbreak in Congo.

Image Credit: WGBH News

Pandora Report 8.31.14

by juliadhomstad, posted in Pandora Report

Fall classes at George Mason have already started and this Labor Day weekend marks the official end of summer. This week, we have stories covering a wide range of topics—an Ebola update (of course), a fascinating article on vaccinia infections acquired through shaving, Haj precautions, and the ISIS “laptop of doom.”

Best wishes for a safe and enjoyable holiday!

Ebola Virus Outbreak Could Hit 20,000 Within Nine Months, Warns WHO

There were many stories this week covering the continuing Ebola outbreak in West Africa. Senegal saw its first (imported) case of the virus this week and has banned flights to and from the affected countries while shutting its land border with Guinea and Nigeria saw its first death outside of the capital city of Lagos. In the Democratic Republic of Congo, where Ebola first emerged in 1976, there have been reported cases of a hemorrhagic gastroenteritis similar to Ebola. I read conflicting accounts this week of the “patient zero” for the Ebola outbreak—a young boy or an older traditional healer. There were reports of some U.S. universities screening students from West Africa for Ebola. There was coverage of a Toronto medical isolation unit ready for patients and information about GlaxoSmithKline’s experimental ebola vaccine which would be tested on humans in the next few weeks.

All of this news came among World Health Organization estimates that this West African outbreak could affect 20,000 people over the next nine months and that half a billion dollars would be needed to stop the spread of the disease.

The Wall Street Journal—“The WHO program will likely cost around $490 million and require contributions from national governments, some U.N. and non-governmental agencies, as well as humanitarian organizations, it said.”

First Reported Spread of Vaccinia Virus Through Shaving After Contact Transmission

This week, reports in the August issue of Medical Surveillance Monthly Report from the Armed Forces Health Surveillance Center covered vaccinia virus infection—the virus used for smallpox vaccinations—within the U.S. Air Force. The infections in the report occurred in June 2014, and affected four individuals.

Infection Control Today—“Over the past decade, most cases of contact vaccinia (i.e., spread of the virus from a vaccinated person to an unvaccinated person) have been traced to U.S. service members, who comprise the largest segment of the population vaccinated against smallpox. Most involve women or children who live in the same household and/or share a bed with a vaccinee or with a vaccinee’s contact. Of adult female cases, most are described as spouses or intimate partners of vaccinees or secondary contacts. Of adult male cases, most involve some type of recreational activity with physical contact, such as wrestling, grappling, sparring, football, or basketball. Household interactions (e.g., sharing towels or clothing) and “unspecified contact” are also implicated.”

Government to Keep Haj Infection-Free 

This week, the Saudi Arabian Ministry of Health announced mandatory measures for Haj and Umrah pilgrims coming from countries with active outbreaks or high rates of infectious diseases. The Health Ministry sent information to embassies outlining health requirements for those seeking pilgrim visas.

Arab News—“‘Although we do not issue Haj visas for pilgrims coming from endemic countries, we will still be monitoring pilgrims coming from other African countries for Ebola symptoms,’ said [Sami] Badawood [Jeddah Health Affairs director.]

He said the ministry would also focus on diseases such as yellow fever, meningitis, seasonal influenza, polio and food poisoning.”

Is the ISIS Laptop of Doom an Operational Threat?

Discovery of a laptop, which has been linked to ISIS, raises new questions about the organization’s plans relating to use of WMD—specifically chemical or biological weapons. Over 35,000 files on the laptop are being examined and has offered new insight into ISIS and their WMD aspirations.

Foreign Policy—“Most troubling is a document that discusses how to weaponize bubonic plague. But turning that knowledge into a working weapon requires particular expertise, and it’s not clear that the Islamic State has it.”

 

Image Credit: Wikimedia Commons