International Biosecurity and Biosafety Initiative for Science (IBBIS)

💻 ✅ Webinar Next Week 🧬💻 Are you ready to comply with the new U.S. Framework for Nucleic Acid Synthesis Screening? Starting in October 2024, anyone funded by the U.S. government (including those outside the United States) will need to order DNA and RNA from providers who conduct synthesis screening. This affects providers of synthetic nucleic acids, whether gene- or oligo-length, including CROs, core facilities, and biofoundries. Hear from screening tool providers Aclid, Battelle, #RTXBBN, and International Biosecurity and Biosafety Initiative for Science (IBBIS), as well as policy and industry leaders from National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST), Twist Bioscience and U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS). Register here: https://lnkd.in/eqbikv42

Do you provide synthetic DNA or RNA to US federally funded researchers? Do you manufacture synthesis equipment for use in US federally funded research labs? The Johns Hopkins Center for Health Security can help you understand the 6 key actions you must take starting October 26, 2024 in order to serve US-funded customers. IBBIS welcomes efforts to encourage and standardize biosecurity for synthetic nucleic acids. Our Common Mechanism, a free and open-source tool for sequence screening, is one of several tools available to support for screening orders: https://lnkd.in/dtTnG5Qg. Please reach out if you would like assistance getting started with synthesis screening, whether that's using the Common Mechanism or another tool that might be a better fit for your needs.

Last month, Piers Millett delivered a keynote speech at SBA 3.0 "The International Synthetic Biology, AI, and Biosecurity Conference" in Africa. 🔉 Why and how to screen synthetic nucleic acids 🗞️Want to learn more? read our news section! https://lnkd.in/dRZzKEdh Thanks, SynBio Africa!

Are you ready to comply with the new U.S. Framework for Nucleic Acid Synthesis Screening? Starting in October 2024, anyone funded by the U.S. government (including those outside the United States) will need to order DNA and RNA from providers who conduct synthesis screening. This affects providers of synthetic nucleic acids, whether gene- or oligo-length, including CROs, core facilities, and biofoundries. Hear from screening tool providers Aclid, Battelle, #RTXBBN, and the International Biosecurity and Biosafety Initiative for Science (IBBIS), as well as policy and industry leaders from National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST), Twist Bioscience and National Security Council, The White House. Register here: https://lnkd.in/eqbikv42

The Biorisk Question☣❔ Asimov put out a blog post discussing biotechnology innovations that exist in a "nebulous zone of grey": they may bring great benefit, but may also inadvertently enable harm. 🔊 The post discusses case studies like AI tools that design proteins, microbes that produce opioids, and enzymes that edit the human genome, and offers a question for researchers to ask: "If successful, would this technology overcome protections that currently keep things safe?" ➡ IBBIS was happy to be recognized in the post among many organizations working towards a shared goal of safeguarding technology. 🔗https://lnkd.in/eZj7kGwU

Join us at the SBA3.0 International Synthetic Biology, Artificial Intelligence (AI), and Biosecurity Conference in Africa happening in Nairobi, Kenya. 📅 July 17-19 📍 Nairobi Safari Club by Swiss-Belhotel Join Piers Millett Ph.D., Executive Director of the International Biosecurity and Biosafety Initiative for Science (IBBIS) who will deliver a keynote address at this event alongside many other leaders in the industry from around the world. Book your ticket today: bit.ly/SBACONF2024

At #GHSC2024, IBBIS held a workshop on "Safeguarding nucleic acid synthesis: why and how to screen customers and orders". One biologist who frequently orders synthetic DNA said the sequence screening exercise gave him new appreciation for the difficulty faced by "the other side". The two workshop groups disagreed about which sequences should receive follow-up screening, and participants highlighted the difficulty of assessing the risks of organisms they were not familiar with. According to another participant, "it was really useful to see how much screening can exist on a spectrum from box ticking to a more holistic assessment". In the customer screening exercise, participants were asked to screen flagged orders from customers including an irritable toxin researcher, an enthusiastic high school student, and a co-founder of an early-stage diagnostics startup. Discussion after the exercise focused on the importance of laboratory biosafety governance and the need for clear ways for customers to prove their legitimacy. We expect to iterate on and re-run this workshop in a virtual format ― reach out to screening@ibbis.bio if you'd like to participate.

The 2024 Laboratory biosecurity guidance from World Health Organization is now available. ➡️ This publication is the update of the document published in 2006 entitled “Biorisk management: laboratory biosecurity guidance” https://lnkd.in/gHPcMDb9

At #GHSC2024, IBBIS held a workshop on "Safeguarding nucleic acid synthesis: why and how to screen customers and orders". One biologist who frequently orders synthetic DNA said the sequence screening exercise gave him new appreciation for the difficulty faced by "the other side". The two workshop groups disagreed about which sequences should receive follow-up screening, and participants highlighted the difficulty of assessing the risks of organisms they were not familiar with. According to another participant, "it was really useful to see how much screening can exist on a spectrum from box ticking to a more holistic assessment". In the customer screening exercise, participants were asked to screen flagged orders from customers including an irritable toxin researcher, an enthusiastic high school student, and a co-founder of an early-stage diagnostics startup. Discussion after the exercise focused on the importance of laboratory biosafety governance and the need for clear ways for customers to prove their legitimacy. We expect to iterate on and re-run this workshop in a virtual format ― reach out to screening@ibbis.bio if you'd like to participate.

Exciting News! The international #BioFundersCompact has officially launched, setting new biosafety and biosecurity standards for life science research and innovation. This compact will help to ensure that rapid technological advancements in bioscience and biotechnology are used responsibly and to safeguard against their misuse. Learn more about this important initiative from NTI | bio and the Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness Innovations. ⬇️