Bomb explodes in biotech lab

Despite reports, police doubt Amaranth's use of adult stem cells was the motivation

| 2 min read

Register for free to listen to this article
Listen with Speechify
0:00
2:00
Share

Police in Watertown, Mass., said yesterday that they don't believe that the unknown person who blew up a pipe bomb in a biotech laboratory there last Thursday (August 26) was protesting stem cell research, as has been broadly suggested, because the company uses only adult cells in its research—not controversial embryonic cells.

That leaves authorities without a clear motive, but with at least one person they have interviewed in connection with the bombing—a former worker at another company in the building who is awaiting trial for attempted arson because of a separate incident on the premises last year.

The 3 am explosion in the Boston suburb blew out windows and caused extensive damage to Amaranth Bio, a start-up company that moved into the building just 6 weeks ago. No one was injured, because no employees are assigned to work overnight.

Agents and officers from the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), ...

Interested in reading more?

Become a Member of

The Scientist Logo
Receive full access to more than 35 years of archives, as well as TS Digest, digital editions of The Scientist, feature stories, and much more!
Already a member? Login Here

Meet the Author

  • John Dudley Miller

    This person does not yet have a bio.
Share
3D illustration of a gold lipid nanoparticle with pink nucleic acid inside of it. Purple and teal spikes stick out from the lipid bilayer representing polyethylene glycol.
February 2025, Issue 1

A Nanoparticle Delivery System for Gene Therapy

A reimagined lipid vehicle for nucleic acids could overcome the limitations of current vectors.

View this Issue
Considerations for Cell-Based Assays in Immuno-Oncology Research

Considerations for Cell-Based Assays in Immuno-Oncology Research

Lonza
An illustration of animal and tree silhouettes.

From Water Bears to Grizzly Bears: Unusual Animal Models

Taconic Biosciences
Sex Differences in Neurological Research

Sex Differences in Neurological Research

bit.bio logo
New Frontiers in Vaccine Development

New Frontiers in Vaccine Development

Sino

Products

Tecan Logo

Tecan introduces Veya: bringing digital, scalable automation to labs worldwide

Inventia Life Science

Inventia Life Science Launches RASTRUM™ Allegro to Revolutionize High-Throughput 3D Cell Culture for Drug Discovery and Disease Research

An illustration of differently shaped viruses.

Detecting Novel Viruses Using a Comprehensive Enrichment Panel

Twist Bio 
Zymo Research

Zymo Research Launches Microbiome Grant to Support Innovation in Microbial Sciences