"Could engineered pathogens be accidentally released with catastrophic consequences? And could the publication of this..provide a roadmap..to engineer the next pandemic? ..Unfortunately, the world is nowhere near establishing strong enough guardrails."
economist.com
economist.com
"Such questions are being asked against the backdrop of rapid international expansion of research into the covid virus..and other pathogens with pandemic potential. This includes work to modify these pathogens or synthesise them from their genetic components/"
"The questions also come amid the construction of new high-containment labs to house this work, some of which may not have proper safety and security systems in place."
"This..contributes to growing risks of biological catastrophe, through accidents or deliberate misuse. So, what can be done to protect against an outcome that could be far worse than the destruction wrought by covid-19?"
"According to the Global Health Security Index, which measures biosecurity and pandemic preparedness capacity across 195 countries, as of 2021, 94% of countries had no national-level oversight measures for dual-use research."
"There is also no international organisation dedicated as its top priority to reducing these risks..International leadership and collaboration is essential for advancing promising approaches and raising the bar globally for biosafety and biosecurity."
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