vwriting viruses is bad! in the real world? wasn't it "duh" too?

[Gadi Evron <ge () linuxbox org>]

http://sciencenow.sciencemag.org/cgi/content/full/2006/1101/4

In a controversial study, researchers have resurrected a retrovirus that
infected our ancestors millions of years ago and now sits frozen in the
human genome. Published online by Genome Research this week, the study may
shed new light on the history of these genomic intruders, as well as their
role in tumors. Although this particular virus, dubbed Phoenix, is a wimpy
one, some argue that resuscitating any ancient virus is inherently risky
and that the study should have undergone stricter reviews.

..

..

 Others worry that the study sets a dangerous precedent. Although it was
approved by the French research ministry's Genetic Engineering Committee,
Richard Ebright, a molecular biologist at Rutgers University in New
Jersey, says any study that creates new viruses or activates old ones
should be subject to a special review at the national or international
level. What's more, he says, because the researchers couldn't be
absolutely sure about Phoenix's infectivity, the study should have been
carried out under Biosafety level 4 conditions--the best-protected labs
available--instead of the level 3 conditions utilized.

In the field, the wisdom of reviving endogenous retroviruses has long been
debated, says Johannes L.wer, president of the Paul Ehrlich Institute in
Langen, Germany, who decided against the idea himself. But Heidmann
contends the risks in his study were extremely low. The virus was
genetically modified in such a way that it could replicate only once, he
explains, and a previous study had suggested it would have weak
infectivity.

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