In the United States, a three-year ban on the production of deadly viruses in the laboratory was lifted. According to the BBC on April 20, the decision in the US government was explained by the fact that “the potential benefits of research offset the potential risks.” According to the source, laboratories can now synthesize influenza viruses, SARS and Middle Eastern respiratory syndrome (MERS).
According to updated instructions, laboratories must conduct research responsibly, respond quickly and minimize potential risks. In addition, they are required to take the necessary measures in case of accidents, non-compliance with the rules and procedures, as well as a possible violation of safety regulations.
Research institutions must demonstrate that their work is ethically justified. They should also have enough resources to ensure safe operation, the decision of the US government says. In addition, research institutes are also responsible for the potential causative agents of the epidemic.
Opponents of innovation say experiments with hypermorphic mutations can trigger epidemics. So the epidemiologist Mark Lipsic from Harvard University, in a commentary on Nature magazine, said that such experiments would hardly help in preparing for epidemics, while they could cause outbreaks of disease.
On the other hand, chairman of the US National Biosafety Science Advisory Council Samuel Stanley, who leads the implementation of the new policy, said:
“I am sure that the main bioterrorist is nature itself. And we need to make every effort to be one step ahead. “
Basic research using these agents in laboratories that have proven that they can work without risk is the key to world security, ”he added.
“Now the US National Institutes of Health (NIH) has announced that it is time to lift the moratorium on funding such research, while offering new safety instructions,” the publication said.
After the ban is lifted, each research application will be considered by a special commission of scientists. The application will be approved only if the commission decides that there is no other way to conduct the study, as well as if the associated risk is offset by possible benefits.
The publication recalls that the ban on research was introduced after several government agencies violated the safety rules when working with viruses, including the causative agents of anthrax and bird flu. Thus, according to the BBC, in 2014, two resonant cases occurred due to oversight: in June, 75 employees of the United States Disease Control and Prevention Center in Atlanta ended up in an area presumably infected with anthrax bacteria, and in July an orphan box was discovered in a research center near Washington in which were old test tubes with smallpox virus. In addition, there were fears that published results of studies on pathogens might be used to create mutant viruses.
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