Greg Koblentz, member of the Center’s Scientists Working Group on Biological and Chemical Security, co-authored an article in the journal Health Security on biorisk management in Ukraine. The Russian invasion of Ukraine in February 2022 was accompanied by unfounded Russian allegations of bioweapon activities in Ukraine conducted by the United States and its allies. While false, […]
Expert Panel Votes for Stricter Rules on Risky Virus Research
Greg Koblentz, member of the Center’s Scientists Working Group of Chemical and Biological Threats, spoke with the New York Times about the government oversight over dangerous pathogens. “If the government implements the spirit of what they’ve written, this would be a major overhaul of dual-use research oversight in the United States,” said Gregory Koblentz, a biodefense […]
New worldwide threats prompt Pentagon to overhaul chem-bio defenses
Greg Koblentz, member of the Center’s Scientists Working Group of Chemical and Biological Threats, spoke with Politico about the Department of Defense change in approach to biological threats. “Gregory Koblentz, the director of the Biodefense Graduate Program at George Mason University, said the decision by the administration to look more holistically at chemical and biological threats is […]
Despite risk-management gaps, countries press ahead with new labs that study deadly pathogens
Greg Koblentz, member of the Center’s Scientists Working Group of Chemical and Biological Threats, spoke with the Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists about his work co-leading a project on BSL-3+ and BSL-4 labs and the government research policies that govern them. George Mason University biosecurity expert Gregory Koblentz, who co-leads the project with Filippa Lentzos, a King’s […]
Experts Debate the Risks of Made-to-Order DNA
Greg Koblentz, member of the Center’s Scientists Working Group of Chemical and Biological Threats, spoke with Undark about the ramifications of synthesizing strands of DNA. “It’s not that I’m worried about something happening tomorrow. But the reality is, this capability is increasingly powerful in terms of how long the DNA fragments can be, what you can […]