Ban on deadly pathogen research lifts, but controversy remains
January 8, 2018 – Last month, the U.S. government lifted a three-year moratorium on funding risky research to genetically alter deadly viruses in ways that could make them even more lethal. Epidemiologist Marc Lipsitch of Harvard Chan School…
Scientists recreate extinct virus, sparking concern
After scientists at the University of Alberta put together from scratch a relative of the smallpox virus—horsepox—some experts are concerned that the ability to create such deadly pathogens will wind up in the wrong hands. Marc Lipsitch, professor…
Potential Trump administration appointment of vaccine skeptic raises alarms
Robert F. Kennedy Jr., a lawyer and critic of pediatric immunization programs, announced on January 10, 2017, that he had been tapped by President-elect Donald Trump to head a new commission on vaccine safety and scientific integrity. A Trump…
Alumni win 2016 Kenneth Rothman Epidemiology Prize
June 28, 2016 — John Jackson, SD ’13, and Sonja Swanson, SD ’14, are the winners of the 2016 Kenneth Rothman Epidemiology Prize. The award is given annually for the best paper published in Epidemiology in the preceding…
Ban on hazardous virus experiments could be lifted
Some of the riskiest biological experiments—which have been effectively banned for the last 18 months—could be allowed again if a group of experts agrees on rules governing the work. Scientists, public health officials, and government representatives met March…
New report reignites debate over lab-altered virus research
In 2014, the White House put a moratorium on funding for experiments to produce more dangerous versions of viruses such as bird flu and SARS. Critics had argued that the potential risk of one of these viruses escaping…
Should scientists experiment with highly contagious pathogens?
The current controversy about the wisdom of conducting experiments with pathogens that are genetically engineered to be more contagious presents a unique opportunity to set an effective precedent on the issue of biological experiments that carry large-scale risks,…
Improved safeguards needed at biosafety labs
More needs to be done to improve safety and public accountability at the nation’s high-containment biosafety laboratories that work with deadly viruses and bacteria, according to Marc Lipsitch, professor of epidemiology and director of the Center for Communicable…
Dangerous pathogen research should be stopped—for good
Research on extremely dangerous pathogens—on “pause” in the U.S. as scientific panels consider whether or not to continue federal funding for such work—should be stopped altogether, says Marc Lipsitch, professor of epidemiology and director of the Center for…
Q & A: When lab research threatens humanity
[ Fall 2014 ] Is bench research that creates a lethal, contagious bird flu virus worth the risk that the virus could escape the lab? Not according to Marc Lipsitch, professor of epidemiology at Harvard School of Public…
