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Teams from the Bechtel Corporation at the Blue Grass Chemical Agent-Destruction Pilot Plant (BGCAPP) near Richmond, Ky., have begun purging another batch of chemical weapons, continuing a campaign that intends to destroy nearly 18,000 rockets bearing the VX nerve agent.
The latest round begins... Read More »
The U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) Program announced last week that it is seeking information in three topic areas to support component technology needs.
“DHS SBIR is uniquely positioned to support DHS’s broad mission by finding ways to... Read More »
In an effort to keep transportation safe without slowing the flow of traffic, the New York City subway system, together with a series of collaborators in the federal, academic, and private sectors, is rolling out a testbed and series of biosensors to scan for chemical and biological threats.... Read More »
Looking to address a medical need and reduce development and preparedness costs for taxpayers, the Biomedical Advanced Research and Development Authority (BARDA) has purchased and begun accepting the Paratek Pharmaceuticals antibiotic NUZYRA for use on anthrax infections.
The contract could... Read More »
U.S. Rep. Michael McCaul (R-TX) and Sen. James Risch (R-ID) called on President Joe Biden to immediately impose legally mandated sanctions against the Putin regime in a letter Wednesday.
McCaul, the House Foreign Affairs Committee Lead and Risch, the Ranking Member of the Senate Foreign... Read More »
Proposed congressional legislation would overhaul the Strategic National Stockpile (SNS), expand domestic manufacturing of medical supplies and improve America’s preparedness for public health emergencies.
U.S. Sens. Bill Cassidy (R-LA) and Maggie Hassan (D-NH) on June 8 unveiled the... Read More »
In four months, a Bechtel-led team has managed to destroy approximately 60 tons of VX nerve agent contained in 155-millimeter artillery projectiles, pulling the United States closer to an international chemical weapons reduction goal.
“This is an important milestone for the team,” Ron Hink,... Read More »
Reps. Vern Buchanan (R-FL) and Chris Pappas (D-NH) introduced this week a measure designed to help reduce synthetic drug access.
The Federal Initiative to Guarantee Health by Targeting (FIGHT) Fentanyl Act seeks to make permanent the current, temporary classification of fentanyl-related... Read More »
When Ebola was a low priority for the private sector, the Department of Defense (DOD) was one of the few organizations that funded early-stage research and development on vaccines and treatments. The division of the DoD that played a critical role in that research was the Chemical and Biological... Read More »
Senate Foreign Relations Committee leaders have expressed support for enforcing the international norm against chemical weapons, particularly the Assad regime’s illegal use of chemical weapons in Syria.
Sens. Marco Rubio (R-FL), Jim Risch (R-ID), Bob Menendez (D-NJ), and Jeanne Shaheen (D-NH)... Read More »
The Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) recently awarded contracts to FLIR Systems, Leidos, and Charles River Analytics to create lightweight materials and more adaptable countermeasures for equipment protective against chemical and biological threats.
The problem is, while... Read More »
The Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW) released the findings of its investigation on an incident that occurred in Saraqib, Syrian Arab Republic, on Feb. 4, 2018.
OPCW’s Investigation and Identification Team (IIT) is charged with identifying the perpetrators of the use... Read More »
FLIR Systems, Inc. announced Monday that it had won a contract with the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) to develop new fabrics embedded with catalysts and chemical agents that can fight and reduce chemical and biological threats on contact.
The fabrics will be incorporated... Read More »
Department of Justice officials said a man has been sentenced to 12 years in federal prison without parole for attempting to purchase a chemical weapon on the dark web.
Jason William Siesser, 46, of Columbia, Mo., pleaded guilty to one count of attempting to acquire a chemical weapon and one... Read More »
Biomedical Advanced Research and Development Authority (BARDA) officials said the agency has provided funding for studies evaluating the therapeutic potential of aCT1 eye drops in models of sulfur mustard corneal injury.
BARDA officials said the effort is via its Division of Research, Innovation... Read More »
A new bill introduced by U.S. Rep. Blaine Luetkemeyer (R-MO) last week, the Stopping Illicit Fentanyl Trafficking Act, seeks to permanently schedule all illicit fentanyl and remove concerns surrounding the pending expiration of a temporary Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) effort.
“One of... Read More »
The Biomedical Advanced Research and Development Authority (BARDA) and MediciNova, Inc. seek to use a new partnership to repurpose the anti-inflammatory MN-166, better known as ibudilast, for use against acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS) and chlorine exposure.
Traditionally, ibudilast... Read More »
Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand (D-NY) has introduced a bill designed to better protect firefighters in New York and nationwide from toxic exposure to PFAS chemicals.
PFAS are used as an ingredient in special foam used to fight fires, called aqueous film forming foam (AFFF). The use of the foam,... Read More »
A bipartisan group of U.S. Senators introduced legislation to help protect the health and safety of firefighters and emergency responders from adverse substances.
The Protecting Firefighters from Adverse Substances (PFAS) Act directs federal agencies to develop best practices, training, and... Read More »
President Joe Biden has returned the United States to the fold of the World Health Organization (WHO), dispatching his Chief Medical Adviser, Dr. Anthony Fauci, to address the body and make that return official.
“I am honored to announce that the United States will remain a member of the World... Read More »
Officials at the Blue Grass Chemical Agent-Destruction Pilot Plant in Richmond, Ky., began destroying its next batch of chemical weapons, bringing the nation closer to its goal of eradicating the national stockpile by 2023.
Specifically, a 155-millimeter artillery projectile filled with VX nerve... Read More »
The engineering, construction, and project management firm Bechtel has initiated an effort to address chemical weapons destruction to reach the goal of eradicating the national stockpile by 2023.
“As a signatory to the Chemical Weapons Convention treaty, the U.S. is committed to destroying the... Read More »
In tests conducted on mice, the ricin toxin vaccine RiVax -- developed by Soligenix, Inc. -- provided at least a full year’s worth of protection against the deadly agent.
Ricin is a lethal plant-derived toxin feared for its potential use as a bioterrorism and chemical warfare agent. Highly... Read More »
The Biomedical Advanced Research and Development Authority (BARDA) is expanding a contract with Chrysalis BioTherapeutics, Inc. to pursue the development of TP508, or Chrysalin, a peptide with the potential to counteract injuries resulting from extreme radiation exposure.
Radiation exposure can... Read More »
The U.S. government awarded $7 million to the Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW) to support the construction of the new OPCW Centre for Chemistry and Technology.
The ChemTech Centre seeks to strengthen the OPCW’s capabilities to fully address new and emerging chemical... Read More »
The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Science and Technology Directorate (S&T) has released a comprehensive journal detailing the toxic inhalation hazards of industrial chemicals like ammonia and chlorine.
The Jack Rabbit II project involving multiple large-scale chlorine release experiments... Read More »
U.S. Rep. Vern Buchanan (R-FL) is co-sponsoring a bill that would provide health coverage for Iraq and Afghanistan veterans exposed to toxic burn pits.
The Presumptive Benefits for War Fighters Exposed to Burn Pits and Other Toxins Act was drafted after a veteran in Buchanan’s district,... Read More »
Citing Agent Orange's wide impact, two Democratic senators are urging the inclusion of Senate Amendment 1972 in the final National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2021 (NDAA).
Sens. Kirsten Gillibrand (D-NY) and Jon Tester (D-MT) said the amendment would establish a presumption of... Read More »
Argentum Medical has been awarded a contract by the Office of the Assistant Secretary for Preparedness and Response at the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services for its Silverlon burn dressings.
The Silverlon burn dressings will be used for patients affected by mass casualty incidents,... Read More »
Through a new contract announced this week, the Biomedical Advanced Research and Development Authority (BARDA) will provide up to $30 million to Invirsa, a small Columbus, Ohio, biopharmaceutical company, for a treatment that could hold the cure to DNA-damage from sulfur mustard injuries in... Read More »
The Biomedical Advanced Research and Development Authority (BARDA) began this month soliciting support for repurposing therapeutics into medical countermeasures against chemical threats.
The organization is now accepting abstract submissions for potential funding through its Division of... Read More »
The Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency’s (DARPA) SIGMA+ program conducted a test of advanced chemical and biological sensing systems in the Indianapolis area this past August.
DARPA collected more than 250 hours of daily life background atmospheric data in the city that helped train... Read More »
The Biomedical Advanced Research and Development Authority (BARDA) awarded contracts this week to ICON Government & Public Health Solutions, Pharm-Olam LLC, PRA Health Sciences, Inc., and Technical Resources International, Inc. for the development of various medical countermeasures.
Granted... Read More »
BARDA is partnering with Inversa to develop a treatment for eye problems associated with DNA damage, particularly those caused by chemical agents like sulfur mustard gas.
Ingrained in the public mind since its widespread use in WWI, sulfur mustard is a means of chemical warfare that causes the... Read More »
The Biomedical Advanced Research and Development Authority (BARDA) has joined University of Pennsylvania researchers from two labs to build lung-on-a-chip technology, which promises a safe means of studying chlorine gas effects and the discovery of treatments.
Chlorine gas was used as a weapon... Read More »
