News
Florida International University researchers create broad-spectrum antibiotic
Researchers from Florida International University's Herbert Wertheim College of Medicine have created a novel, broad-spectrum antibiotic containing arsenic to combat the rise in antibiotic-resistant bacteria. "The antibiotic, arsinothricin or AST, is a natural product made by soil bacteria and... Read More »
Task force will work to enhance safety of religious communities
Former Department of Homeland Security Secretaries Michael Chertoff and Jeh Johnson have been named co-chairmen of the new Community Safety and Security Task Force designed to enhance the safety and resilience of religious communities. The task force will make recommendations on how to... Read More »
Emergent BioSolutions sees promising results in study phase of chikungunya virus vaccine
A vaccine being developed by Emergent BioSolutions Inc. to treat the chikungunya virus showed strong results in an analysis of a Phase 2 clinical study, the company said on Tuesday. The chikungunya virus virus-like particle (CHIKV-VLP) vaccine candidatewas well-tolerated and no... Read More »
OPCW officials visit United States
Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW) officials recently visited the United States, touring Colorado's Pueblo Chemical Agent-Destruction Pilot Plant (PCAPP). The group included the OPCW Director-General H.E. Fernando Arias, Chairperson of the Executive Council H.E.... Read More »
LAX conducts AirEx initiative
Los Angeles International Airport’s (LAX’s) 2019 Air Exercise (AirEx) attracted nearly 200 first responders, who participated in the simulation designed to test the airport's airfield accident readiness. “The safety and security of our guests is paramount and this exercise allows... Read More »
Research team develops promising Nipah virus vaccine
Research members from the Jefferson Vaccine Center of the Philadelphia University and Thomas Jefferson University have created a new drug to combat Nipah virus, which currently has no approved vaccines. Nipah is an RNA virus transmissible from animals such as bats and pigs to humans. It’s a... Read More »
Legislation would require FBI to inform Congress when it investigates a candidate
Legislation introduced in the House this week would close a loophole in current law and require the FBI director to notify the House and Senate Intelligence Committee when a counterintelligence investigation is opened about a candidate for federal office. The requirement also would apply into... Read More »
BARDA to collaborate with Johnson & Johnson for innovation zone
The Biomedical Advanced Research and Development Authority (BARDA), a component of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, will collaborate with Johnson & Johnson Innovation and the Children’s National Health System to launch an innovation zone. The innovation zone will... Read More »
Virginia Tech researchers awarded $1.4M grant for malaria control strategy
Researchers from Virginia Tech were awarded a $1.4 million grant from Unitaid to perform economic and environmental impact assessments of a four-year project in Africa aimed at reducing malaria cases. That project is called the Board One Health Endectocide-based Malaria Intervention in Africa... Read More »
Funds target additional sensor system development
ENSCO, Inc. has secured an 18-month, $2.9 million Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Science and Technology Directorate (S&T) contract to continue sensor system development initiatives. ENSCO's work would focus on SenseNet, an endeavor devoted to developing a low-cost integrated sensor... Read More »
San Antonio secures terrorism preparedness grant
The City of San Antonio has secured a $3.25 million grant through the Department of Homeland Security's Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) to address terrorism preparedness efforts. The $1.75 million funding increase from FEMA’s Urban Area Security Initiative would bolster initiatives... Read More »
GAO reviews workload increases at nuclear facility
In 2012, the National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA) completed its Kansas City facility and the Government Accountability Office (GAO) found workload projections have increased significantly from earlier forecasts. The facility produces or procures more than 80 percent of... Read More »
DHS to award $1.7B in grants for emergency preparedness
The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) will award eight preparedness grant programs totaling more than $1.7 billion in fiscal year 2019. The grants will provide funding to states and local governments, as well as transportation authorities, nonprofit organizations, and the private sector,... Read More »
Laredo CBP personnel prepping for holiday travel
With Holy Week (Semana Santa) soon approaching, Customs and Border Protection (CBP) Office of Field Operations (OFO) officials said Laredo Field Office (LFO) holiday preparation is continuing. “Our CBP officers and agriculture specialists are the nation’s frontline of defense against all... Read More »
Social media protection plan inquiry launched
Homeland Security Subcommittee lawmakers are seeking insight regarding investments Global Internet Forum to Counter Terrorism members are making to prevent terrorists and extremists platform exploitation. Rep. Max Rose (D-NY), chair of the Homeland Subcommittee on Intelligence and... Read More »
CDDEP researchers label lack of antibiotics access major health hurdle worldwide
A recent report from the Center for Disease Dynamics, Economics & Policy (CDDEP) lays out present problems in global access to antibiotics. The majority of the world’s annual 5.7 million antibiotic-treatable deaths occur in low- and middle-income countries. The mortality burden from... Read More »
Maine National Guard battalion deploys
The 286th Combat Sustainment Support Battalion of the Maine Army National Guard, which will be taking part in Operation Atlantic Resolve, deployed Saturday. As part of the operation, U.S. forces have been rotating through Europe since Russia invaded Ukraine in 2014. American forces train with... Read More »
Zeteo Tech wins $1.5M award from DHS
Zeteo Tech was awarded $1.5 million from the Department of Homeland Security’s Science and Technology Directorate (S&T) to develop a new sensor technology to detect biological threat agents. The sensor technology combines trigger and detector functions and will enable real-time detection... Read More »
NTI holds workshop on reducing biosecurity risks
The Nuclear Threat Initiative (NTI) held a workshop in London earlier this month to develop projects to reduce biological risks that are a consequence of advanced technology. The workshop was designed to provide recommendations to the NTI Biosecurity Innovation and Risk Reduction Initiative’s... Read More »
Bill would give Congress oversight of transfer of nuclear information
A bipartisan group of senators introduced a bill that would ensure that Congress has the authority to review all materials related to the transfer or nuclear technologies and information. These transfers are known as Part 810 agreement whereby the U.S. government authorizes persons or companies... Read More »
Lawmakers visit hurricane-damaged military bases
House Armed Services Committee Readiness Subcommittee Chairman Rep. John Garamendi (D-CA) is joining congressional colleagues in touring military bases damaged by Hurricane Florence. Garamendi will be accompanied by Ranking Member of the Readiness Subcommittee, Rep. Doug Lamborn (R-CO) and Maj.... Read More »
Partnership combats transnational criminal organizations
U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) and Joint Task Force-West (JTF-W) South Texas Corridor officials are espousing the benefits of collaborative efforts to thwart transnational criminal activity. With the advent of the Southern Border and Approaches Campaign launched in December... Read More »
International research team creates Middle East Respiratory Syndrome vaccine
Scientists from The University of Texas Medical Branch at Galveston, Saudi Arabia and Canada have created a vaccine to defend against Middle East Respiratory Syndrome (MERS), which has caused hundreds of deaths since being identified in 2012. For testing, two versions of the potential vaccine... Read More »
New study shows NARCAN Nasal Spray more quickly diffuses opioid overdoses compared to syringe
NARCAN Nasal Spray appears to be the best life-saving antidote that family members and other bystanders can administer to save a loved one from overdosing on opioids, a new study has found. The study’s conclusions may bode well for potentially decreasing drug overdose fatalities in the United... Read More »
NTI awards $100,000 to Nuclear Security Index Challenge winners
Nuclear Threat Initiative (NTI) officials have awarded a pair of $50,000 grants to winners of the organization's Nuclear Security Index Challenge, which seeks to improve nuclear security conditions worldwide. The first grant was awarded to Travis Carless (RAND Corporation), Kenneth Redus... Read More »
Twist Bioscience touts Battelle biosecurity technology
The synthetic biology firm Twist Bioscience Corporation is espousing the benefits of Battelle's ThreatSEQTM web service DNA screening platform, which is designed to aid in bolstering internal biosecurity efforts. “Battelle created the ThreatSEQ web service with significant input from industry... Read More »
CDDEP researchers label lack of antibiotics access major health hurdle worldwide
A recent report from the Center for Disease Dynamics, Economics & Policy (CDDEP) lays out present problems in global access to antibiotics. The majority of the world’s annual 5.7 million antibiotic-treatable deaths occur in low- and middle-income countries. The mortality burden from... Read More »
Legislation would establish cybersecurity grant program
Recently introduced bicameral legislation would create a grant program, authorized by the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), to allow state, local, and tribal governments to strengthen their cybersecurity defenses. The program would allow governments to develop, revise or implement cyber... Read More »
Senate Democrats ask Shanahan about deployment of troops to border
Senate Democrats are asking Acting Secretary of Defense Patrick Shanahan to clarify statements made by Department of Defense (DOD) officials about the deployment of military personnel to the southwest border. In their letter to Shanahan, the senators are seeking assurances that this deployment... Read More »
TSA forms Surface Transportation Security Advisory Committee
Transportation Security Administration (TSA) officials have established the Surface Transportation Security Advisory Committee (STSAC), which will be responsible for providing recommendations on surface transportation security matters. The committee operates in accordance with provisions of the... Read More »
GAO offers Marine Corps recommendations
The Government Accountability Office (GAO) has issued three recommendations to the Marine Corps regarding the branch's efforts to track training funds and link them to mission readiness. The GAO analysis stemmed from a congressional report maintaining the Corps' budget estimates haven't... Read More »
DOD principal deputy assistant secretary inspects Pennsylvania National Guard training center
Veronica Daigle, principal deputy assistant secretary for Readiness for the U.S. Department of Defense (DoD), recently visited the Pennsylvania National Guard’s (PNG) training center at Fort Indiantown Gap (FTIG) as part of her tour of schools and ranges where soldiers and airmen from National... Read More »
Sacramento Regional Transit District earns TSA award
Sid Hanna, Transportation Security Administration (TSA) Federal Security director in Sacramento, recently presented Henry Li, general manager and CEO of the Sacramento Regional Transit District (SacRT), with the Gold Standard Award. The annual award honors transit agencies that have high scores... Read More »
Sens. Gardner, Warner introduce bill to encourage states to bolster cybersecurity
U.S. Sens. Cory Gardner (R-CO) and Mark Warner (D-VA) introduced legislation this week to encourage state, local, and tribal governments to strengthen their defenses against cybersecurity threats. The State Cyber Resiliency Act would authorize the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) to run a... Read More »