21 juin 2018 | International, Sécurité

Synthetic biology raises risk of new bioweapons, US report warns

Report warns that swift progress in our ability to manufacture viruses is making us vulnerable to biological attacks

The rapid rise of synthetic biology, a futuristic field of science that seeks to master the machinery of life, has raised the risk of a new generation of bioweapons, according a major US report into the state of the art.

Advances in the area mean that scientists now have the capability to recreate dangerous viruses from scratch; make harmful bacteria more deadly; and modify common microbes so that they churn out lethal toxins once they enter the body.

The three scenarios are picked out as threats of highest concern in a review of the field published on Tuesday by the US National Academy of Sciences at the request of the Department of Defense. The report was commissioned to flag up ways in which the powerful technology might be abused, and to focus minds on how best to prepare.

Michael Imperiale, chair of the report committee, and professor of microbiology and immunology at the University of Michigan, said the review used only unclassified information and so has no assessment of which groups, if any, might be pursuing novel biological weapons. “We can't say how likely any of these scenarios are,” he said. “But we can talk about how feasible they are.”

In the report, the scientists describe how synthetic biology, which gives researchers precision tools to manipulate living organisms, “enhances and expands” opportunities to create bioweapons. “As the power of the technology increases, that brings a general need to scrutinise where harms could come from,” said Peter Carr, a senior scientist at MIT's Synthetic Biology Center in Cambridge, Massachusetts.

More than 20 years ago, Eckard Wimmer, a geneticist at Stony Brook University in New York, highlighted the potential dangers of synthetic biology in dramatic style when he recreated poliovirus in a test tube. Earlier this year, a team at the University of Alberta built an infectious horsepox virus. The virus is a close relative of smallpox, which may have claimed half a billion lives in the 20th century. Today, the genetic code of almost any mammalian virus can be found online and synthesised. “The technology to do this is available now,” said Imperiale. “It requires some expertise, but it's something that's relatively easy to do, and that is why it tops the list.”

Other fairly simple procedures can be used to tweak the genes of dangerous bacteria and make them resistant to antibiotics, so that people infected with them would be untreatable. A more exotic bioweapon might come in the form of a genetically-altered microbe that colonises the gut and churns out poisons. “While that is technically more difficult, it is a concern because it may not look like anything you normally watch out for in public health,” Imperiale said.

The report calls on the US government to rethink how it conducts disease surveillance, so it can better detect novel bioweapons, and to look at ways to bolster defences, for example by finding ways to make and deploy vaccines far more rapidly. For every bioweapon the scientists consider, the report sets out key hurdles that, once cleared, will make the weapons more feasible.

One bioweapon that is not considered an immediate threat is a so-called gene drive that spreads through a population, rewriting human DNA as it goes. “It's important to recognise that it's easy to come up with a scary-sounding idea, but it's far more difficult to do something practical with it,” said Carr.

https://www.theguardian.com/science/2018/jun/19/urgent-need-to-prepare-for-manmade-virus-attacks-says-us-government-report

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  • USAF Launches Effort To Speed Up Commercial EVTOL Market

    26 février 2020 | International, Aérospatial

    USAF Launches Effort To Speed Up Commercial EVTOL Market

    Graham Warwick The U.S. Air Force has detailed its plans to accelerate the emerging advanced air mobility market, and potentially become an early adopter of electric vertical-takeoff-and-landing (eVTOL) vehicles, but is making clear it does not intend to set requirements or fund development. Instead, the service wants to help developers along the way to commercial certification and volume production by providing testing resources and possibly enabling a near-term government public-use market for their vehicles in advance of FAA certification. The Air Force's Agility Prime program office published its “innovative capabilities opening” (ICO) on Feb. 25, establishing a contracting framework for prototyping projects designed to show whether, as their developers claim, eVTOL vehicles can revolutionize mobility, particularly logistics. Under the ICO framework, which will remain open until Feb. 28, 2025, the service plans to release a series of solicitations for different “areas of interest” (AOI). The first of these—AOI #1, or the “Air Race to Certification”—was also released on Feb. 25. Other AOIs could range from autonomy to manufacturing. Under AOI #1, the Air Force office plans to issue contracts to produce test reports that will substantiate company claims for their eVTOL vehicles. Based on a test report, the service could proceed to the next step, potentially an early procurement, says Col. Nathan Diller, Agility Prime integrated product team lead. “They can leverage that test report to get military certification that would allow near-term government use cases that would accelerate commercial certification, potentially providing revenue and data that accelerates the broader adoption of the technology,” he says. The Air Force has not established explicit requirements for an eVTOL. Instead, it has launched studies into potential missions in which commercial vehicles—both passenger-carrying and larger unmanned aircraft—could be used. These could include distributed logistics, medevac, firefighting, search-and-rescue, disaster relief and facility security. The Air Force is aiming for an initial operating capability (IOC) in fiscal 2023 with a “handful-plus” of vehicles in a squadron. “We have begun a series of studies to look at the business case associated with these different missions, and we have started looking at some basic constructs for what these units [operating the aircraft] might look like,” Diller says. “They may be very different units to what we are doing now.” To qualify under the first AOI, companies must have flown their vehicles by Dec. 17, 2020. Diller says some eVTOL developers are ready to submit test reports and move on to the next step, while others will take longer. “That gives us a year to see which companies are ready, but we feel we are in a position to award contracts quickly.” Agility Prime was provided with $10 million in funding in fiscal 2019 and $25 million in 2020. This is not money requested in the Air Force's fiscal 2021 budget, but Diller says there is a “strong desire and intent to fund” the program in fiscal 2022 and future years to get to an IOC in fiscal 2023. The AOI calls for vehicles that can carry three to eight people, with a range greater than 200 mi., speed faster than 100 mph and endurance of more than 60 min. As well as passenger-carrying eVTOLs, Diller says Agility Prime is looking at unmanned cargo aircraft heavier than 1,320 lb. because the other services are focusing below that weight. The Agility Prime ICO is structured to encourage participation by smaller companies and nontraditional defense contractors, but not exclude traditional Pentagon suppliers that are innovating, he says. Bidders are required to cover at least a third of the cost of the prototype project themselves. The objective of Agility Prime is to “catalyze the commercial market by bringing our military market to bear,” Air Force acquisition chief Will Roper said at a roundtable on Feb. 21. “It's equally important to make sure that commercial market catalyzes first in the U.S.,” he added. “That's equally as important as providing the capability to the warfighter. What we don't want to happen is what happened with the small drone migration to China,” he said. “It was a commercial technology, the Pentagon didn't take a proactive stance on it, and now most of that supply chain has moved to China.” U.S. government agencies have banned the use of Chinese-made drones, citing security concerns. “If we had realized that commercial trend and shown that the Pentagon is willing to pay a higher price for a trusted supply-chain drone, we probably could have kept part of the market here and not had to go through the security issues we have now,” he said. “Agility Prime is saying we are not going to let that happen again,” Roper said. Diller says the Air Force is not imposing military requirements on eVTOL developers because it wants to benefit from the low acquisition and operating costs and potentially high production volumes that could come out of the commercial market. “Since we are not putting research and development money in this, we are going to fall into accordance with what the industry partners want to do,” he says. “Our intent is that any testing they do with us will be something that takes them along the path to commercial certification and is not diverting them.” If the Air Force were to set requirements and fund development, “we would feel we are putting at risk a very large market that would allow us to eventually capitalize on that affordable quantity based on potential mass production at an automobile rate,” he says. https://aviationweek.com/shows-events/air-warfare-symposium/usaf-launches-effort-speed-commercial-evtol-market

  • Korean and Israeli firms eye partnership to arm helicopter with kamikaze drones

    8 mars 2021 | International, Aérospatial

    Korean and Israeli firms eye partnership to arm helicopter with kamikaze drones

    Korea Aerospace Industries and Israel Aerospace Industries have signed a memorandum of understanding that aims to pair helicopters with loitering munitions and offer the drones to the South Korean military.

  • Contract Awards by US Department of Defense - August 28, 2020

    31 août 2020 | International, Aérospatial, Naval, Terrestre, C4ISR, Sécurité, Autre défense

    Contract Awards by US Department of Defense - August 28, 2020

    MISSILE DEFENSE AGENCY Lockheed Martin Corp., Sunnyvale, California, is being awarded a $911,765,000 modification (P00049) for existing sole source, indefinite-delivery/indefinite-quantity contract HQ0147-12-D-0001 for Terminal High Altitude Area Defense element development and support services. This modification brings the total maximum ceiling value of this contract from $2,335,000,000 to $3,246,765,000. This modification provides for the extension of the period of performance for additional incremental development, support to flight and ground test programs and responsive support to warfighter requirements to sustain the Ballistic Missile Defense System throughout the acquisition life cycle. Expected completion dates will be established under subsequent task order awards. The work will be performed at Sunnyvale, California; and Huntsville, Alabama. No funding is being obligated at the time of award. The Missile Defense Agency, Huntsville, Alabama, is the contracting activity. DEFENSE LOGISTICS AGENCY Abbott Rapid DX North America LLC, Orlando, Florida, has been awarded a firm-fixed-price, indefinite-delivery/indefinite-quantity contract for the production and delivery of BinaxNOW rapid point-of-care antigen tests for COVID-19. The initial order is valued at $760,000,000 for 150 million tests and distribution costs. This was a sole-source acquisition to meet an urgent and compelling national need. An Emergency Use Authorization has been approved and signed by the Food and Drug Administration for this contract award. This is a four-month contract with no option periods. Locations of performance are Florida and Maine, with a Dec. 31, 2020, ordering period end date. Using customer is the Department of Health and Human Services. The maximum dollar value on the contract is $1,500,000,000. Type of appropriation is fiscal 2020 CARES Act funding. The contracting activity is the Defense Logistics Agency Troop Support, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania (SPE2DE-20-D-0027). (Awarded Aug. 27, 2020) Petro Star, Inc.,* Anchorage, Alaska (SPE605-20-D-4008, $62,088,432); Delta Western LLC, Seattle, Washington (SPE605-20-D-4002, $32,629,727); Crowley Government Services, Jacksonville, Florida (SPE605-20-D-4005, $26,468,885); and Petro 49 Inc.,* doing business as Petro Marine Services, Seward, Alaska (SPE605-20-D-4009, $15,852,473), have each been awarded a fixed-price with economic-price-adjustment contract under solicitation SPE0600-20-R-0222 for various types of fuel. These were competitive acquisitions with 18 responses received. They are 60-month contracts with a six-month option period. Locations of performance are Alaska, Florida and Washington, with a Sept. 30, 2024, performance completion date. Using customers are Army, Navy, Air Force, Marine Corps, Coast Guard and federal civilian agencies. Type of appropriation is fiscal 2020 through 2024 defense working capital funds. The contracting activity is the Defense Logistics Agency Energy, Fort Belvoir, Virginia. Breton Industries Inc.,* Amsterdam, New York, has been awarded a maximum $17,810,477 firm-fixed-price contract for vehicular door handles, soft top parts kits, vehicular fitted covers and vehicular curtain assemblies. This was a competitive acquisition with four offers received. This is a three-year base contract with two one-year option periods. Location of performance is New York, with an Aug. 27, 2023, performance completion date. Using military service is Army. Type of appropriation is fiscal 2020 through 2023 defense working capital funds. The contracting activity is the Defense Logistics Agency Land and Maritime, Columbus, Ohio (SPE7LX-20-D-0166). Immix Technology Inc., McLean, Virginia, has been awarded a maximum $17,637,924 firm-fixed-price delivery order (SP4701-20-F-0161) against five-year basic ordering agreement NNG-15-S-C39B with one five-year option period for IBM software maintenance support renewal. This was a competitive acquisition with four responses received. This is a one-year base contract with two one-year option periods. Location of performance is Virginia, with an Aug. 31, 2021, performance completion date. Using customer is the Defense Logistics Agency. Type of appropriation is fiscal 2020 through 2021 defense working capital funds. The contracting activity is the Defense Logistics Agency Contracting Services Office, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. AMG Engineering & Machining Inc., Indianapolis, Indiana (SPE4A7-20-D-0363, $17,236,056); and Janel's Industries Inc., Dowagiac, Michigan (SPE4A7-20-D-0362, $13,155,156), have each been awarded a maximum firm-fixed-price, indefinite-quantity contract under solicitation SPE4A7-20-R-0032 for aircraft structural fittings. This was a competitive acquisition using justification 15 U.S. Code 657f, as stated in Federal Acquisition Regulation 6.206. This is a five-year contract with no option periods. Locations of performance are Michigan, Florida and Indiana, with an Aug. 28, 2025, performance completion date. Using military service is Air Force. Type of appropriation is fiscal 2020 through 2025 defense working capital funds. The contracting activity is the Defense Logistics Agency Aviation, Richmond, Virginia. AIR FORCE National Strategic Research Institute – University of Nebraska, Lincoln, Nebraska, has been awarded a maximum $92,000,000 single-award, indefinite-delivery/indefinite-quantity contract for research and development services supporting U.S. Strategic Command (USSTRATCOM) and other government agencies. The contract is specifically for obtaining Department of Defense essential engineering, research and development capabilities and mission-related research including test, evaluation, and systems analysis of related topics for USSTRATCOM in the defined core competencies of nuclear detection and forensics, detection of chemical and biological weapons, active and passive defense against weapons of mass destruction and consequence management. Work will primarily be performed at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln, Lincoln, Nebraska; and University of Nebraska Medical Center, Omaha, Nebraska, and is expected to be completed Feb. 28, 2026. This award is a result of a sole-source acquisition. Fiscal 2020 operations and maintenance funds in the amount of $1,000 are being obligated at the time of award. The 55th Contracting Squadron, Offutt Air Force Base, Nebraska, is the contracting activity (FA4600-20-D-0003). PLEXSYS Interface Products, Camas, Washington, has been awarded a $66,771,502 firm-fixed-price, time and materials contract to the Airborne Warning and Control System (AWACS) Mission Crew Training Set (MCTS) effort. This contract will provide services to support the AWACS Block 40/45 system by providing operations and maintenance to eight MCTS systems. This contract will ensure that these MCTS systems are ready for training at the beginning of each training day, ensuring it remains operational throughout training events and then securing it at the conclusion of the training day. Work will be performed at Tinker Air Force Base, Oklahoma; Kadena Air Base, Japan; Nellis AFB, Nevada; and Joint Base Elmendorf, Alaska, and is expected to be completed by July 2024. This award is the result of a sole-source acquisition. Fiscal 2020 centralized asset management aircraft procurement funds in the amount of $12,142,258 are being obligated at the time of award. Air Force Life Cycle Management Center, Hanscom AFB, Massachusetts, is the contracting activity (FA8730-20-C-0009). M1 Support Services, Denton, Texas, has been awarded a $25,649,894 modification (P00050) to contract FA4890-16-C-0012 for the T‐38 aircraft maintenance program. The modification will provide intermediate and organizational maintenance of T‐38 aircraft for Air Combat Command, Air Force Materiel Command and Air Force Global Strike Command. 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Fiscal 2020 research, development, test and evaluation funds in the amount of $6,700,000 are being obligated at the time of award. Total cumulative face value of the contract is $85,525,491. Space and Missile Systems Center, Los Angeles Air Force Base, El Segundo, California, is the contracting activity. Range Generation Next LLC, Sterling, Virginia, has been awarded a $17,620,089 cost-plus-fixed-fee modification (P000313) to contract FA8806-15-C-0001 for cyber hardened infrastructure support Phases Three and Four. This modification supports an increase in launch and test range requirements. Work will be performed at Eastern Range, Patrick Air Force Base, Florida; and Western Range, Vandenberg AFB, California, and is expected to be completed Feb. 24, 2023. Fiscal 2020 operations and maintenance funds in the full amount are being obligated at the time of award. Space and Missile Systems Center, Peterson AFB, Colorado, is the contracting activity (FA8806-15-C-0001). 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Jackson Foundation, Bethesda, Maryland, was awarded an $18,808,103 cost-plus-fixed-fee contract for medical research to implement a multifaceted artificial intelligence initiative at the Biotechnology High-Performance Computing Software Applications Institute to support scientific research in multiple areas of military medicine. Bids were solicited via the internet with one received. Work will be performed in Bethesda, Maryland, with an estimated completion date of Aug. 16, 2023. Fiscal 2020 Defense Health Program and research, development, test and evaluation (Army) funds in the amount of $4,673,419 were obligated at the time of the award. U.S. Army Medical Research Acquisition Activity, Fort Detrick, Maryland, is the contracting activity (W81XWH-20-C-0031). Alstom Renewable US LLC, Greenwood Village, Colorado, was awarded a $15,943,367 firm-fixed-price contract to perform all work required to rewind two hydroelectric generating units at Hartwell Powerhouse. Bids were solicited via the internet with four received. Work will be performed in Hartwell, Georgia, with an estimated completion date of May 31, 2022. Fiscal 2020 hydropower customer funded funds in the amount of $15,943,367 were obligated at the time of the award. U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Mobile, Alabama, is the contracting activity (W91278-20-C-0025). McMillen LLC, Boise, Idaho, was awarded a $12,231,000 firm-fixed-price contract for equipment, structures and all labor, plant, equipment and materials for the rehabilitation of the two low-level outlets of the Coolidge Dam. Bids were solicited via the internet with five received. Work will be performed at the Coolidge Dam, Arizona, with an estimated completion date of Oct. 22, 2022. Fiscal 2020 Bureau of Indian Affairs construction funds in the amount of $12,231,000 were obligated at the time of the award. U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Albuquerque, New Mexico, is the contracting activity (W912PP-20-C-0018). EA Engineering, Science and Technology Inc.,* Hunt Valley, Maryland, was awarded an $8,025,292 firm-fixed-price contract to address groundwater contamination resulting from historical releases at Kirtland Air Force Base. Bids were solicited via the internet with two received. Work will be performed at Kirtland Air Force Base, New Mexico, with an estimated completion date of Aug. 27, 2025. Fiscal 2020 environmental restoration, defense funds in the amount of $8,025,292 were obligated at the time of the award. U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Albuquerque, New Mexico, is the contracting activity (W912PP-20-C-0020). NAVY La Jolla Logic, San Diego, California (M68909-20-D-7601); Pueo Business Solutions LLC, Fredericksburg, Virginia (M68909-20-D-7602); Axcend, Inc., Fairfax, Virginia (M68909-20-D-7604); Lumbee Tribe Enterprises LLC, Pembroke, North Carolina (M68909-20-D-7605); and Trillion Technology Solutions, Inc., Reston, Virginia (M68909-20-D-7606), are being awarded a firm-fixed-price, indefinite-delivery/indefinite-quantity contract for network, engineering, testing and cybersecurity support services with an estimated ceiling value of $46,000,000. Work will be performed in Camp Pendleton, California, and is expected to be complete by May 2025. Fiscal 2020 operations and maintenance (Marine Corps) funds in the amount of $1,500 will be obligated on the first task order immediately following contract award and funds will expire the end of the current fiscal year. This contract was competitively procured via the beta.SAM.gov website, with 17 offers received. 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This multiple award contract was procured as a small business set-aside via the beta.Sam.gov website with two offers received. The Mid-Atlantic Regional Maintenance Center, Norfolk, Virginia, is the contracting activity. Mare Island Dry Dock, Vallejo, California, is awarded a $15,378,728, 50-calendar day, firm-fixed-price contract (N32205-20-C-4066) for the mid-term availability of the fleet replenishment oiler USNS Henry J. Kaiser (T-AO 187). The $15,378,728 consists of the amounts listed in the following areas: Category “A” work item cost, additional government requirement, other direct costs and the general and administrative costs. 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Basic Commerce and Industries Inc.,* Moorestown, New Jersey, is awarded a $12,281,171 indefinite-delivery/indefinite-quantity, cost-reimbursement-type contract for research, development, production, integration, installation, software support and maintenance of Weather Radar Through-the-Sensor systems. This five-year contract includes no options. Work will be performed in Moorestown, New Jersey (95%); and San Diego, California (5%). The period of performance is from Aug. 28, 2020, through Aug. 27, 2025. Contract funds will not expire at the end of the current fiscal year. Funding will be obligated via task orders using research, development, test and evaluation (Navy); other procurement (Navy); and operations and maintenance (Navy) funds. This contract was awarded with circumstances permitting other than full and open competition pursuant to the authority of 10 U.S. Code 2304(c)(5) as implemented by Federal Acquisition Regulation 6.302-5. Naval Information Warfare Center Pacific, San Diego, California, is the contracting activity (N66001-20-D-3413). *Small Business https://www.defense.gov/Newsroom/Contracts/Contract/Article/2329454/

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