National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases Unveils Bioterrorism Research Agenda

The comprehensive plan includes short-, intermediate- and long-term research goals and describes specifically how bioterrorism countermeasures will be developed for each microbe. The document also contains a copy of the Strategic Plan for Counter-Bioterrorism Research of the NIAID, which provides a general overview of the Institute's broad plans for attacking the full range of potential bioterrorism pathogens.

"Research is a vital element of bioterrorism defense," says HHS Secretary Tommy G. Thompson. "The NIAID Counter-Bioterrorism Research Agenda describes the highest priorities of an accelerated program to expand research on bioterrorism agents and to quickly develop new diagnostics, drugs and vaccines to protect the public."

The Research Agenda was developed by NIAID scientists and reviewed by an outside panel of experts from academia, industry and government in early February. The plan focuses on the Category A diseases as described by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC): anthrax, smallpox, plague, tularemia, viral hemorrhagic fevers and botulism. Those diseases cause high death rates or serious illness, are relatively easy to spread, could cause public panic or require special steps for public health preparedness. NIAID plans to develop research plans for CDC Category B and C agents in the near future.

As the National Institutes of Health's lead institute on immunology and infectious diseases research, NIAID has made many key contributions to bioterrorism research over the years. In fiscal year 2003, the President proposes a $1.2 billion increase in bioterrorism funding for NIAID. The government's renewed focus on bioterrorism research will enable NIAID to expand ongoing projects and to establish much-needed new initiatives to prepare for potential bioterrorism attacks. New programs will involve traditional grants with academic researchers and institutions plus new models for government-industry partnerships.

According to NIAID Director Anthony S. Fauci, M.D., the proposed increase in research funding will also pay big benefits to other research. "In recent years, we have witnessed several emerging and re-emerging infectious diseases that have presented us with many of the same challenges as bioterrorism, namely identifying changing threats and preparing for them to appear at any time," he says. "In addition, people lack immunity to emerging diseases, and effective treatments are not always known. The influx of resources and renewed energy into infectious diseases research will no doubt help us enormously in tackling naturally occurring illnesses such as drug-resistant tuberculosis and influenza." Dr. Fauci also describes how increased basic research in immunology, including studies of the body's broadly protective innate immune system, should lead to additional advances in many non-infectious diseases such as cancer and autoimmune diseases.

The Research Agenda describes two separate but necessary arms of biomedical research. Basic research will continue to provide the framework for scientific and medical advances, and applied research will move laboratory developments into products that can be used to protect the public from disease. The agenda divides research on each Category A microbe into six key elements:

* Microbial biology. Increased basic research will help scientists acquire comprehensive information on the biology and disease-causing mechanisms of potential bioterror pathogens. Such information, which includes sequencing of each microbe's genome, will provide the information needed to develop new drugs and vaccines to combat possible bioterrorism-caused diseases.

* Human immune response. Increased research on the basic components of the human immune system will enable scientists to develop safe and potent vaccines, highly accurate diagnostic tests, and broadly acting drugs that boost overall immunity to a range of pathogens.

* Vaccines. Vaccines are one of the most effective