Countermeasures
A recent discovery made by researchers from the University of Pittsburgh (Pitt) Schools of the Health Sciences revealed a loophole in which the influenza virus packages its genetic material to give rise to new strains of the flu.
The research, detailed in a recent issue of the journal Nucleic... Read More »
More than 135 researchers, representing 10 medical centers designated by the U.S. government as a Regional Ebola and other Special Pathogen Treatment Center (RESPTC), recently convened at the National Ebola Treatment and Education Center (NETEC) at Emory University in Atlanta for a two-day event to... Read More »
In response to fiscal concerns raised by a number of sheriffs in Arizona, U.S. Rep. Martha McSally (R-AZ) recently introduced legislation that would reauthorize a program to reimburse state and local governments for incarcerating undocumented immigrants who commit crimes in the United States.... Read More »
Fifteen analytical chemists representing Latin American and Caribbean member states to the Chemical Weapons Convention (CWC), recently convened at the Laboratory for the Verification of Chemical Weapons (LAVEMA) in Madrid, Span for a two-week training course on the analysis of controlled chemical... Read More »
U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) agents recently made a large seizure of cocaine after intercepting a fishing vessel along the Miami River.
The incident began as CBP agents, along with one Border Patrol agent, boarded the vessel to process four crew members and their cargo as they... Read More »
Emergent BioSolutions Inc. said on Friday it plans to acquire Sanofi’s ACAM2000 business, the only vaccine licensed by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for active immunization against smallpox, in an all-cash transaction totaling up to $125 million.
ACAM2000 is the primary smallpox... Read More »
Border Patrol agents stationed along Interstate 5 near San Clemente, California recently made a seizure approximately 58 pounds of illicit narcotics during a single traffic stop.
The incident began as agents stopped a 2006 Chevrolet Equinox SUV driven by a 45-year old U.S. citizen. During... Read More »
Prior to an international conference of the Global Coalition to Defeat ISIS, International Criminal Police Organization (Interpol) Secretary General Jürgen Stock emphasized the need for military successes to be translated into actionable intelligence for global police forces.
The information... Read More »
Tulane University was recently awarded $12 million from the National Institutes of Health (NIH) to test a potential new drug treatment against the Lassa virus and to develop a vaccine candidate against the disease.
The awards were issued through NIH’s National Institute of Allergy and... Read More »
U.S. Reps. Tim Murphy (R-PA) and Greg Walden (R-OR) recently sent a public letter to the National Institutes of Health (NIH), regarding the Blue Ribbon Panel’s review of the 2014 smallpox virus incident on the NIH campus that called into question a number of missed opportunities to discover vials... Read More »
The Florida State Department of Health recently entered into a data use agreement and analytics agreement with the University of North Carolina (UNC) to officially join the National Collaborative for Bio-Preparedness (NCBP), a network which aims improve national preparedness for biohazard-related... Read More »
A group of 24 first responders representing 15 Asian Member States to the Chemical Weapons Convention (CWC) recently convened in Tehran, Iran for a training course on emergency assistance and protection against chemical weapons.
The course, which was organized by the Organization for the... Read More »
The number of passengers that will fly during the summer season is expected to surpass more than 2.5 million people per day, the highest number in years, according to recent estimates from the Transportation Security Administration (TSA).
According to the TSA, the week of June 25 - July 1, 2017... Read More »
Botulinum toxin, produced by Clostridium botulinum bacteria, is the most potent biological toxin known to exist on Earth. The toxin causes botulism, a severe muscle-paralyzing, potentially fatal disease, characteristics that increase its likelihood as a potential bioweapon.
And while the U.S.... Read More »
A bipartisan group of Congress members recently sent a public letter to Defense Secretary James Mattis urging him to direct military departments to incorporate cybersecurity education into the Junior Reserve Officers Training Corps (JROTC) curricula for high school students.
The letter was... Read More »
Gov. Terry McAuliffe (D-VA) signed a letter this week, accepting the plan laid out by the First Responder Network Authority (FirstNet) and AT&T to build a wireless public safety broadband network throughout Virginia, making it the first state in the country to do so.
As part of the agreement,... Read More »
The New Mexico Department of Health recently awarded a second contract to researchers from the New Mexico State University (NMSU) to expand a previous project map that shows the geographic distribution of mosquitoes that could potentially carry the Zika virus.
According to a release by NMSU,... Read More »
An outbreak of the acute viral hemorrhagic fever illness called Lassa fever has recently been reported by officials from the World Health Organization (WHO) in multiple West African nations including Nigeria.
As of last month, a total of 501 suspected cases have been reported, 104 of which... Read More »
Medical first responders engaged in emergent chemical incident simulations last month during a training course designed to educate first responders in emergency medical situations involving toxic chemical contamination held in Madrid, Spain and hosted by the Organization for the Prohibition of... Read More »
According to a recent update conducted by the U.S. Government Accountability Office (GAO), the Department of Defense (DOD) has identified an infrastructure manager for the chemical and biological defense program (CBDP) and is in the process of developing the position’s roles and responsibilities.... Read More »
In response to a recently reported cyberattack that targeted the nation’s nuclear facilities, U.S. Sen. Maria Cantwell (D-WA) released a statement condemning the attack while reiterating a previous call for a cybersecurity assessment by the Trump Administration.
“The disturbing reports of... Read More »
Representatives of customs agencies from member states to the Chemical Weapons Convention (CWC) recently convened at the headquarters of the Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW) to consider improvements to the CWC’s transfer regime during a three-day training seminar.
In... Read More »
The United States recently entered into a customs mutual assistance agreement (CMAA) with Bolivia and Georgia, which fosters collaborative efforts in security and facilities trade between the U.S. and both nations.
CMAAs work to provide the legal framework for the exchange of information and... Read More »
The Los Alamos National Laboratory (LANL) is set to host 10 hazardous materials response teams from Missouri, New Mexico, Oklahoma and Nebraska for the 21st annual Hazmat Challenge, pitting each team against one another in a series of graded, timed exercises from July 10 to 14.
The event, held... Read More »
A bill that establishes a grant program for military-civilian partnerships in trauma care to allow both the military and private citizens to benefit from each other’s expertise was recently advanced by the House Energy and Commerce Committee.
The bill, titled the MISSION ZERO Act, was... Read More »
The World Health Organization (WHO) declared that the most-recent outbreak of Ebola virus disease (EVD) in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) has officially concluded after
42 days.
According to WHO, the 42-day mark represents two incubation cycles of the virus after the last confirmed... Read More »
Two amendments to the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) Reauthorization Act of 2017 that aim to improve transparency and security of the nation’s airspace were recently approved by the Senate Commerce, Science, and Transportation Committee.
Both amendments were authored by U.S. Sen. Ron... Read More »
U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) officers stationed at ports of entry along the California border with Mexico recently seized more than 700 pounds of illicit narcotics, captured 13 fugitives from justice, and apprehended two would-be illegal undocumented immigrants over a series of... Read More »
California-based Border Patrol agents recently seized more than 40 pounds of heroin and 34 pounds of fentanyl over separate incidents.
The first event occurred as agents encountered a 46-year old man driving a 2014 Nissan Versa sedan near the Border Patrol checkpoint along Interstate 5 in San... Read More »
Smiths Detection’s IONSCAN 600 explosives trace detection system recently passed certification testing by the Transportation Security Administration (TSA).
The certification test is the first of a three-step testing sequence required by the TSA’s overall qualification process and is... Read More »
After the completion of a fact-finding mission (FFM) from the Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW), the organization recently confirmed the use of sarin gas on April 4 in the Khan Shaykhun area, Idlib Province in the Syrian Arab Republic.
OPCW’s final report was... Read More »
A bill that aims to strengthen the nation’s preparedness of its food, agriculture, and veterinary systems against terrorism and other high-risk events through the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) was recently signed into law by President Trump.
The bill was introduced by U.S. Rep.... Read More »
Latin American and Caribbean State Parties to the Chemical Weapons Convention (CWC) recently convened at a meeting at the Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons’ headquarters in The Hague to commemorate the CWC’s 20th anniversary and discuss the full implementation of the... Read More »
In the wake of mounting reports that actors within the Russian government worked to compromise the 2016 President election, a group of Democratic House leaders recently announced a new task force that aims to ensure the health and security of the nation’s election systems.
Developed by House... Read More »
A new DNA vaccine candidate was shown to induce persistent humoral and cellular immune responses and provided protection from the DV1 dengue virus serotype among inoculated mice, according to a recent study conducted by Capital Medical University in Beijing and the Beijing Institute for Brain... Read More »
