Threats
DOD grants $6.5 million award for polyester-tipped swab production
U.S. Cotton, LLC has secured a $6.5 million Department of Defense (DOD) contract to increase domestic production of polyester-tipped swabs used in COVID-19 home test kits. The effort, in accordance with the Department of Health and Human Services, would also aid COVID-19 mass testing... Read More »
BARDA program seeks to expand development of digital health tools and at-home diagnostic tests
Thinking up ways to better address future public health emergencies, the Biomedical Advanced Research and Development Authority’s (BARDA) Division of Research, Innovation and Ventures (DRIVe) has expanded a partner program focused on technology development to include digital health tools and... Read More »
FBI releases hate crime statistics
The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) has released 2020 Hate Crime Statistics compiled by the Uniform Crime Reporting (UCR) Program -- detailing offenses, victims, offenders and locations of hate crimes. Data was collected via submissions from 15,136 law enforcement agencies outlining... Read More »
Becerra declares public health emergencies in the wake of Hurricane Ida
Health and Human Services Secretary Xavier Becerra declared public health emergencies on Monday for Louisiana and Mississippi due to the effects for Hurricane Ida. The declaration comes after President Joe Biden declared a state of emergency for the two states. Together, the declarations give... Read More »
CDC issues health advisory over risks and mounting illnesses linked to Ivermectin as COVID-19 treatment
Although a United States Food and Drug Administration (FDA)-approved prescription medication, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) issued a warning last week that the drug ivermectin is not meant to be used for prevention or treatment of COVID-19. Failing to heed that warning... Read More »
California roundtable addresses federal wildfire assistance efforts
Sen. Alex Padilla (D-CA) recently hosted local leaders in Santa Rosa, Calif., during a roundtable discussion regarding wildfire prevention, response and recovery efforts. The discussion and listening session stemmed from the White House's approval of Calif. Gov. Gavin Newsom’s request for a... Read More »
DHS to Launch New Approach to Hiring Cyber Talent
The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Cybersecurity Service has launched a new approach to hiring and retaining top cyber talent, the department said Friday. In order to recruit the best cybersecurity employees to work across cybersecurity specializations and DHS Component Agencies,... Read More »NIH begins study of extra COVID-19 vaccine dose effects on people with autoimmune disease
The National Institutes of Health (NIH) began a Phase 2 clinical trial last week to investigate any antibody response generated by an extra dose of authorized/approved COVID-19 vaccines among patients with autoimmune disease who experienced no response from a previous vaccine regimen. The... Read More »Pandemic Action Network proposes financing global pandemic preparedness through UN-run fund
A new policy brief released this month by the advocacy group Pandemic Action Network (PAN) calls on world leaders to create a 100-day action plan toward creating a new financing mechanism at the United Nations General Assembly capable of bolstering pandemic preparedness by at least $10 billion... Read More »
NTI analysis recommends immediate action to manage use of AI in nuclear weapons systems
According to a new paper from the nonprofit Nuclear Threat Initiative (NTI), artificial intelligence in nuclear weapons systems is a neutral wash of possibilities -- but it also appears inevitable, and as a result, immediate action is needed to balance benefits and risks while the technology is... Read More »
HHS fills vacant public posts on tick-borne illness advisory group
New voices were added to the United States Department of Health and Human Services’ (HHS) Tick-Borne Disease Working Group this week, filling positions left vacant by public members looking to workshop ideas on how best to counter rising cases of tick-borne illnesses. In all, seven new members... Read More »
Phase 3 trial for INOVIO COVID-19 vaccine candidate authorized to proceed in Brazil
INOVIO received the green light for phase three of its INNOVATE Phase 2/3 clinical trial of INO-4800 last week, allowing it to proceed with efficacy evaluation of its COVID-19 DNA vaccine candidate in Brazil. Alongside its partner, Advaccine Biopharmaceuticals Suzhou Co., Ltd., INOVIO intends to... Read More »Zalgen to supply Lassa Fever antibody testing kits for CEPI study in West Africa
The largest ever Lassa Fever study in West Africa secured the means of testing this week, thanks to a contract between the Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness Innovations (CEPI) and Zalgen Labs LLC, which will supply antibody testing kits for up to 7,000 participants. Zalgen, a biotechnology... Read More »
Trial data shows Johnson & Johnson COVID-19 booster shot provides sizeable antibody uptick
New data released by Johnson & Johnson this week showed that using its single-shot COVID-19 vaccine as a booster for the previously vaccinated could provide as much as a nine-fold increase in antibodies for patients at least 18 years old. The news follows interim reports from July, published in... Read More »
House Republicans press NIH and NIAID for further details on Wuhan Lab biosafety concerns
Republican leaders on the House Energy and Commerce Committee this week queried the director of the National Institutes of Health (NIH), Dr. Francis Collins, with more questions in the saga of the Chinese Wuhan Institute of Virology, its research and the origins of COVID-19. Writers included... Read More »
Emergent BioSolutions’ candidate part of federal trial for out-patient COVID-19 treatment
A plasma-derived COVID-19 candidate from Emergent BioSolutions Inc. is part of a late-stage federal study that will test the therapy as a potential outpatient treatment for people who are at high risk of developing severe disease, including adults 55 and older and those who are... Read More »
Phase 2/3 trial launched for Chikungunya vaccine in Costa Rica
Vaccination has begun for a Phase 2/3 trial of Bharat Biotech International Ltd’s (BBIL) Chikungunya vaccine candidate, through a partnership with the International Vaccine Institute (IVI) in Costa Rica. The Costa Rican trial of BBV87, the official name for the candidate, marks the... Read More »
BARDA accepting partners to create diagnostic assays for respiratory RNA viral pathogens
The Biomedical Advanced Research and Development Authority (BARDA) placed a call for partners this week to aid the organization in developing new sequencing-based, agnostic diagnostic tests better capable of detecting respiratory RNA viruses. Potential partners will be able to help guide the... Read More »
Briefing sought on Taliban access to U.S. military equipment
A pair of lawmakers have forwarded correspondence to the Department of Defense, seeking a briefing and information related to the Taliban’s access to U.S. military equipment in Afghanistan. In a letter to Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin, House Committee on Oversight and Reform Ranking Member... Read More »
Moderna applies for full U.S. licensure of its COVID-19 vaccine following Phase 3 study success
With data from its Phase 3 COVE study showing a COVID-19 vaccine with 93 percent effectiveness, Moderna, Inc. has officially filed for a biologics license application (BLA) to the United States Food and Drug Administration (FDA) that would lead to full licensure. It’s an important step, which... Read More »
DHS funds target sensor system development
Honolulu, Hawaii-based Oceanit Laboratories has secured a $949,999.78 Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) program award for sensor system development. While sensors that include range finders, thermal imaging devices, and radio frequency detectors are... Read More »
U.S., Singapore expand cybersecurity cooperation initiative
The United States and Singapore reached an agreement that seeks to expand cybersecurity cooperation efforts between the nations. The Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) -- signed by Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) Director Jen Easterly and Chief Executive of the Cyber... Read More »
Soligenix demonstrates filovirus vaccine platform capabilities for multiple heat stable candidates
Through publication of data in Vaccine, this week Soligenix showcased the capabilities of its filovirus vaccine platform to formulate and provide heat stabilization for multiple antigen combinations of vaccine candidates: monovalent, bivalent, and trivalent. The single-vial platform project was... Read More »
Bavarian Nordic begins Phase 2 clinical trial of COVID-19 booster vaccine
A 210-person Phase 2 clinical trial for the COVID-19 vaccine candidate, ABNCoV2, began this week to determine its potential as a booster vaccine for those who have either caught the disease previously or been otherwise vaccinated. Licensed by Bavarian Nordic A/S and developed by AdaptVac, the... Read More »
Astra-Zeneca COVID-19 antibody therapeutic shows promise in Phase 3 trial
Results of a Phase 3 clinical trial have shown that AstraZeneca’s antibody combination for COVID-19, AZD7442, cuts the risk of symptomatic COVID-19 cases by 77 percent for at least three months. That is dependent on the treatment being taken prior to infection. However, the antibodies used in... Read More »
Lawmakers express Taliban prisoner release concerns
A trio of lawmakers have forwarded correspondence to White House National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan regarding detainees reportedly released from detention facilities in Afghanistan after Taliban seizure of the country. Reps. John Katko (R-NY), Michael McCaul (R-TX), and Mike Rogers (R-AL)... Read More »
WHO forms new advisory group on origins of novel pathogens
With the formation of a new Scientific Advisory Group for the Origins of Novel Pathogens (SAGO), the World Health Organization (WHO) is calling for experts to lend their knowledge on the origins of pathogens with wide-reaching potential. This multidisciplinary group will consist of up to 25... Read More »
DoD Activates Civil Reserve Air Fleet to Assist with Afghanistan Efforts
U.S. Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin ordered the Commander of the U.S. Transportation Command to activate Stage I of the Civil Reserve Air Fleet (CRAF) on Sunday. The activation will provide the U.S. Department of Defense with access to commercial air mobility resources to help in the... Read More »
FDA grants first full COVID-19 vaccine approval to Pfizer-BioNTech
The United States Food and Drug Administration (FDA) on Monday granted full approval to Pfizer-BioNTech’s COVID-19 vaccine for use among patients 16 years and older, making it the first of the disease’s vaccines to cross beyond conditional use. Since Dec. 11, 2020, the mRNA-based vaccine had... Read More »
Congressional watchdog: HHS, DHS, DOD, USDA must mutually prepare for biological threats
While key federal agencies prepared interagency response plans and conducted 74 interagency exercises from 2009 through 2019 to prepare for and respond to a wide variety of biological incidents, the Government Accountability Office (GAO) recently determined that the agencies weren’t on the same... Read More »
Rep. Pocan introduces bill to bolster efforts to vaccinate 30 percent of the world’s poorest populations
U.S. Rep. Mark Pocan (D-WI) introduced legislation Wednesday that seeks to divert a small percentage of military spending towards global vaccination efforts, vaccinating potentially an additional 30 percent of the world’s low-income population within a year. The COVID Defense Act would... Read More »
Abandoned Afghanistan military equipment accountability sought
A group of lawmakers recently forwarded correspondence to Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin seeking a complete account of military equipment left behind in Afghanistan. U.S. Sen. Marco Rubio (R-FL) joined 23 Senate colleagues in penning the letter to Austin. The equipment has already or risks... Read More »
Soligenix filovirus vaccine candidates prove effective, heat stable in preclinical data
According to preclinical data produced by Soligenix, Inc. this week, positive, effective results have been demonstrated by multiple filovirus vaccine candidates. In collaboration with the University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa, Soligenix’s vaccines proved capable against three potentially deadly... Read More »
CDC to launch new center for disease outbreak forecasting, public health data access
Utilizing initial funding from the American Rescue Plan, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) unveiled plans this week for a new Center for Forecasting and Outbreak Analytics, focused on forecasts of disease outbreaks and analytics for public health. The new center will be... Read More »