A Bloomberg editorial has urged the US’ National Institutes of Health (NIH) to look back to a system for biomedical research review that was recommended eight years ago.
The National Science Advisory Board for Biosecurity (NSABB) made the rare request recently that scientific journals leave out a few details of research into a genetically engineered strain of H5N1, the avian virus, that is highly transmissible from mammal to mammal. The panel was worried that terrorists might exploit the results of the study to create their own lethal and contagious virus.
The panel recommended that the scientists share data with only legitimate scientists who need it. As hundreds of scientists may require data from this study, the editorial suggests that the NIH take up a new review process.
According to Bloomberg, the editors wrote that such a review process was recommended eight years ago by a committee of the National Academy of Sciences. Known as the Fink Committee after its chairman Gerald Fink, this group listed seven classes of experiments that should come under review. This includes those aimed at rendering a vaccine ineffective, conferring resistance to antibiotics or making a pathogen more virulent or transmissible. The Department of Health and Human Services did not take up this recommendation in 2004. However, the new studies of bird flu demonstrate why it should be reconsidered, the editors feel.
To access our daily STM news feed through your iPhone, iPad, or other smartphones, please visit www.myscoope.com for a mobile friendly reading experience.
