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Illustration of a scientist at a high-containment laboratory. He is dressed in a Tyvek suit with a helmet respirator for being in the BSL-3 and is unpacking a box of lab supplies.
Career Chat: Directing a New Science Path
A professional detour veered Ludovic Desvignes into a high-maintenance career—director of a high-containment facility.
Career Chat: Directing a New Science Path
Career Chat: Directing a New Science Path

A professional detour veered Ludovic Desvignes into a high-maintenance career—director of a high-containment facility.

A professional detour veered Ludovic Desvignes into a high-maintenance career—director of a high-containment facility.

biosafety

Illustration of SARS-CoV-2
US Agency to Look into Project on Modified Coronavirus
Catherine Offord | Oct 18, 2022 | 3 min read
The National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases was not aware that the work involved a chimeric strain of SARS-CoV-2, STAT reports.
sign reading "bio-security precautions, no unauthorized personnel"
Opinion: Coronavirus and Regulating Access to High-Risk Pathogens
Michael Parker, Shreya Kalra, and Bryce Kassalow | Feb 10, 2022 | 10+ min read
Overbearing restrictions on research into toxins and pathogens such as SARS-CoV-2 could undermine public health and security in the long run.
photograph of the canadian house of parliament against a blue sky.  a sign in the foreground indicates what the building is.
Canadian Official Reprimanded for Withholding Winnipeg Lab Info
Annie Melchor | Jun 23, 2021 | 3 min read
The House of Commons rebuked the president of the Canadian Public Health Agency for not turning over sensitive information pertaining to the dismissal of government scientists from the National Microbiology Laboratory.
COVID-19, SARS-CoV-2, coronavirus, pandemic, pseudovirus, chimeric virus, disease & medicine, techniques, HIV, VSV, vaccine, variants, mutations
What Pseudoviruses Bring to the Study of SARS-CoV-2
Amanda Heidt | Feb 16, 2021 | 7 min read
Engineered viruses that don’t replicate provide a tractable model for scientists to safely study SARS-CoV-2, including research into vaccine efficacy and emerging variants.
Image of the Day: Huo-Yan Air Lab
Amy Schleunes | Apr 9, 2020 | 1 min read
An inflatable biosafety laboratory may help meet the global need for testing infrastructure during the COVID-19 pandemic.
coronavirus covid-19 sars-cov-2 research virology
Scientists Around the Globe Pivot Their Research to SARS-CoV-2
Diana Kwon | Apr 6, 2020 | 5 min read
Researchers have rapidly identified ways to apply their expertise to help end the pandemic.
n95 mask coronavirus covid-19 sars-cov-2 ppe personal protective equipment face shield respirator virology research lab scientists
Some Coronavirus Researchers Are Running Low on Masks
Katarina Zimmer | Apr 1, 2020 | 7 min read
A large-scale shortage of respirators and face shields threatens progress in some labs that are currently trying to ramp up their studies of SARS-CoV-2.
a biosafety suit hanging in a hallway
CDC Shuts Down Army Lab’s Disease Research
Shawna Williams | Aug 6, 2019 | 2 min read
The agency cites lapses in biosafety procedures at the US Army Medical Research Institute of Infectious Diseases in Maryland.
Gas Cylinder Explosion Kills Researcher at Indian Laboratory
Ashley P. Taylor | Dec 7, 2018 | 2 min read
Two professors have been arrested for negligence in connection with the blast.
Federal Ban Lifted on Studying Most Dangerous Pathogens
Kerry Grens | Dec 19, 2017 | 1 min read
Only a few labs will earn funding for such “gain-of-function” research on SARS, MERS, and other deadly diseases.
Nutrient-Control for GM Bacteria
Jef Akst | Jan 20, 2016 | 1 min read
Genetically modified bacteria that don’t survive unless given an unnatural amino acid could serve as a new control measure to protect wild organisms and ecosystems against accidental release. 
CDC Reassigns Lab Regulation Chief
Bob Grant | Dec 9, 2015 | 2 min read
After a string of breaches involving anthrax, Ebola, and bird flu, the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has reportedly replaced the director of its Division of Select Agents and Toxins.
Controlling Synthetic Bacteria
Kate Yandell | Dec 7, 2015 | 4 min read
“Kill switches” ensure that genetically engineered bacteria survive only in certain environmental conditions.
Reining in Gene Drives
Karen Zusi | Nov 18, 2015 | 2 min read
Researchers have developed two methods to avoid the unchecked spread of engineered genes through wild populations.
Toward Eliminating Poliovirusā€”In the Lab
Rina Shaikh-Lesko | Nov 16, 2015 | 5 min read
As the world inches closer to polio eradication, laboratories studying the virus will have to bolster biosafety standards. Eventually, most will need to stop working with the pathogen entirely.
DoD Under Investigation for Pathogen-Handling Mistakes
Jef Akst | Sep 16, 2015 | 2 min read
US Defense Department labs are the subject of inquiry following several safety breaches concerning the handling of deadly bacteria and virus strains. 
Anthrax Sent in Error to 86 Labs
Kerry Grens | Jul 29, 2015 | 2 min read
A US Army lab shipped live spores of the deadly bacterium because of improper irradiation protocols, a Department of Defense review has found.
Mistaken Anthrax Shipments
Jef Akst | Jun 5, 2015 | 1 min read
The Defense Department reports that live samples of the deadly bacterium may have been accidentally shipped to more than 50 labs in the U.S. and abroad.
CDC Scores Poorly on Biosafety
Jef Akst | Mar 25, 2015 | 2 min read
In the wake of numerous safety breaches at the federal agency, a new report finds US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention oversight “inconsistent and insufficient at multiple levels.”
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