Biotechnology, Public Health, and National Security
- Monoclonal antibodies. In the late 1990s, monoclonal antibodies came of age with the introduction of new products to treat cancer, rheumatoid arthritis and cardiovascular conditions, and to prevent a severe viral infection in premature infants. These products bind to specific undesirable molecules or cells, often destroying them in the process. They can be used like antibiotics or antivirals, as a way to kill viruses or bacteria; they can also be used to detect the presence of infectious agents or to clear bacterial toxins from the bloodstream. And, like vaccines, they can confer immunity against biological agents.
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- Monoclonal antibody-based "test strips" are in development that may provide a 15-minute diagnostic system for infections, including anthrax and smallpox.
- An antibody combination that attaches to anthrax toxin and clears it from the body is also under study. The technology could be applied to other biowarfare threats, such as dengue fever, Ebola and Marburg viruses, and plague.
- Monoclonal antibodies. In the late 1990s, monoclonal antibodies came of age with the introduction of new products to treat cancer, rheumatoid arthritis and cardiovascular conditions, and to prevent a severe viral infection in premature infants. These products bind to specific undesirable molecules or cells, often destroying them in the process. They can be used like antibiotics or antivirals, as a way to kill viruses or bacteria; they can also be used to detect the presence of infectious agents or to clear bacterial toxins from the bloodstream. And, like vaccines, they can confer immunity against biological agents.
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DNA- or RNA-based therapeutics against viruses and bacteria. Researchers are applying genomics and proteomics technologies to discover weaknesses in viruses and bacteria that can be targeted with a new generation of antibiotics and antivirals. Such weaknesses include proteins or segments of RNA essential to an infectious organism's survival or replication. Projects are under way targeting both.
In a similar vein, the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) has funded projects that entail rapid DNA analysis, followed by the rapid synthesis of drugs that can bind, or disable, segments of DNA crucial to an infectious organism's survival.
Researchers have completed genome sequences for numerous infectious agents, including the bacteria that cause malaria, stomach ulcers and food poisoning, as well as organisms responsible for hospital-acquired infections, cholera, pneumonia and chlamydia. Recently, the genome sequence was completed for a potential biowarfare agent, the organism responsible for bubonic plague (Yersinia pestis).
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Drug delivery technology. These technologies can make urgently needed medications easier to distribute and ingest on the battlefield or during a civilian crisis. Medications could even be stored in a soldier's backpack.
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- A lozenge containing interferon, a drug that currently can be given only by injection, is under study. A lozenge is easy to use, safe and can be stored at room temperature for two years.
- Some drugs or vaccines could be applied to patches to allow for quick distribution, easy storage and easy administration.
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Drug delivery technology. These technologies can make urgently needed medications easier to distribute and ingest on the battlefield or during a civilian crisis. Medications could even be stored in a soldier's backpack.
Detection and diagnosis
