biological weapons

Smallpox virus, colorized and magnified in this micrograph 42,000 times, is the real concern for biologists working on a cousin virus — horsepox. They're hoping to develop a better vaccine against smallpox, should that human scourge ever be used as a bi

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Health & Safety

Did Pox Virus Research Put Potential Profits Ahead of Public Safety?

1:05pm February 17, 2018

by Nell Greenfieldboyce

Privately funded scientists made a virus related to smallpox from scratch, hoping their version might lead to a better smallpox vaccine. But critics question the need — and worry about repercussions.

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These photographs, taken at the Naval Research Laboratory in Washington, D.C., show the forearms of several test subjects after they were exposed to nitrogen mustard and lewisite agents during World War II experiments conducted at the lab.

National

Army To Provide Medical Care For Thousands Of Veterans Who Were Test Subjects

3:21pm November 14, 2017

by Bill Chappell

Veterans who were research subjects in chemical and biological testing from 1942 to 1975 can receive care, but critics say the service is still withholding details about the tests it conducted.

Experiments that showed how to make the H5N1 bird flu virus more contagious raised concern about malicious misuse of laboratory research.

National
Science
Health & Safety

Efforts To Prevent Misuse Of Biomedical Research Fall Short

3:56pm September 14, 2017

by Nell Greenfieldboyce

The National Academies of Sciences says not enough has been done to keep legitimate research on pathogens and toxins from being misappropriated and turned into biological weapons.