Washington Post – A look at the myriad technical obstacles that terrorists who might try to manufacture biological weapons could face, problems that would confound even skilled scientists who tried to help them, biological warfare experts say.
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Washington Times – Why agroterrorism needs to be taken more seriously.
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Associated Press – Biological weapons experts, including the scientist who played a big role in eradicating smallpoe experts laud the increased spending government lavished on combatting biological threats in 2004, they sense momentum slowing as public attention and political will wane.
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[The Lancet] – The emergence of bioterrorism as a threat is creating new responsibilities for the medical community and, for the first time in history, is putting physicians at the forefront of managing disaster.
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Associated Press – The Pentagon is seeking emergency authority to resume administering the anthrax vaccine, saying troops in South Korea and the Middle East are at risk.
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Reuters [Nature] – Rapid response with antibiotics would be a more effective way of handling an anthrax terror attack than a pre-emptive mass vaccination program, according to an article published this week in Nature.

More from the Associated Press.
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Associated Press – U.S. states are slowly getting better prepared to handle bioterrorism, but most still do not have statewide response plans and federal funding is declining, according to a new report.
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San Francisco Examiner – An interview with Dr. Larry Brilliant, who worked on the United Nations’ successful campaign to eradicate smallpox in the 1970s, and is a leading expert in the study of infectious diseases that can be used as bio-weapons.
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Canadian Press – Canadian health officials have turned to IBM to help develop a computerized early-warning system to detect outbreaks of infectious disease and bioterrorist attacks.

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Associated Press – Mindful of the threat of a biological attack by terrorists, health ministers from developed countries joined forces Friday to press for the creation of an rapid-reaction center and the stockpiling of smallpox vaccines.

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New York Times – In ordering a new $877 million anthrax vaccine last month, the federal government said it was a major step toward creating a “bioshield” to protect Americans from germ warfare. But delivering that protection may be difficult: the vaccine is unproven in humans, the maker has legal and accounting troubles, and health officials are not prepared to distribute the vaccine quickly if it is needed.

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UPI – BioWatch, the Bush Administration’s effort to use a network of sensors to snatch early warning of a bioterror attack from the air, still lacks sufficient coordination with local officials, critics say.

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Associated Press – A bioterroist attack is inevitable, according to U.S. Health and Human Services Secretary Tommy Thompson.

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Technology Review – The U.S. continues to push the World Health Organization to open up frozen smallpox supplies for testing, which could lead to better viral vaccinations. Others fear that may put a deadly virus in the hands of terrorists.

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Health Central [New England Journal of Medicine] – The ability of the Internet to serve as a sentry against emerging disease outbreaks continues to make its power known.
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CIDRAP – Human testing of an experimental vaccine against the deadly toxin ricin will begin early next year at the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center in Dallas.

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Associated Press – New rules announced Monday will make it easier to investigate a bioterror attack on the U.S. food supply, though they won’t change the underlying problem: the vulnerability of the nation’s food.
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News Wise – During its life cycle, Y. pestis, the infamous “Black Death” bacteria must survive the “bio” environment of a flea in order to explode in the vastly different human system. A team turned advanced robotic high-throughput technologies on Y. pestis, looking for weaknesses in this highly adaptable killer.
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Washington Post – A look at how tax breaks lead to BioPort’s decision to locate its new anthrax vaccine factory in Maryland.
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Science Daily [Vaccine] – Vaccination with the anthrax capsule, a naturally occurring component of the bacterium that causes the disease, protected mice from lethal anthrax infection, according to scientists at the U.S. Army Medical Research Institute of Infectious Diseases (USAMRIID). In addition, the capsule enhanced the effects of protective antigen (PA), the protective component of the current licensed human vaccine.
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ABC – Has US preparedness against a bioterrorist attack improved since 2001? According to many experts, the answer is no.
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Associated Press – The nation’s only maker of a licensed anthrax vaccine cut the ribbon Tuesday for a new plant capable of producing 100 million doses annually for sale to federal, state, local and foreign governments.
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