Safety Rules Can't Keep Up With Biotech Industry

I honestly had no idea that infection in the biotech lab was so prevalent. We hear about biosafety level classifications for labs handling dangerous pathogens in Canada, and assume that the practices at each level of risk are tailored to reduce the risk to zero (if not very close to zero).

But the biotech workplace is very spread out and of course is privately controlled. CDC documents clearly state that classification decisions are made by individual lab managers. There is therefore room for misclassification errors, especially with newly modified organisms, in addition to human handling errors. A classification could, conceivably, be made or swayed, in order to allow research to be carried out without incurring the infrastructure costs that are really necessary. That's not good...

The use of bioengineered organisms for drug or chemical production is not very new, although I can see that it could pose some unique hazards. If a drug-producing mutant organism infected someone (say after a course of antibiotics that wipe out the natural competition) that person could end up with a drug factory in their intestines... I'm sure they are very careful that no such organisms are passed on in the product being sold to the consumer..

Ironically, on the same day the New York Times article, "Safety Rules Can't Keep Up With Biotech Industry" broke, the scientific watchdog group, The Council for Responsible Genetics-GeneWatch Magazine submitted the electronic version of the print subscription; March-April 2010 issue titled, "BioLab Safety".

The Editor of GeneWatch, Sam Anderson stated in the Editorial Section, " This may be one of the most important GeneWatch issue in recent memory".

The electronic version of GeneWatch magazine; BioLab Safety is available free online at http://issuu.com/genewatchmagazine/docs/genewatch23-2?mode=embed&layout=http%3A%2F%2Fskin.issuu.com%2Fv%2Flight%2Flayout.xml&showFlipBtn=true This 28 page electronic version can be read as you would a "printed" magazine issue.

March-April 2010 issue; "BioLab Safety" articles:

A Cruel and Unusual Corporation
By Ralph Nader

A Roach in the Kitchen
By CRG staff – interview with Becky McClain

Commentary: GM Crops
By Eric Hoffman

Dedication: Tony Mazzocchi
By Jeremy Gruber

Give Them an Inch…
By Michael Siciliano

One Bug, One Drug
By Lynn Klotz, Edward Sylvester

The Lab in My Backyard
By Beth Willis

Teatime in the Lab
By Sam Anderson

Book Review: Breeding Bio Insecurity and Germs Gone Wild
By Andrew Thibedeau

Flushing It Down the Rabbit Hole
By Andrew Thibedeau

Topic: Genetic Discrimination
By Jeremy Gruber

Topic: Forensic DNA Databanks
By CRG Staff

The Case of Dr. Malcolm Casadaban
By CRG Staff