3 ms·
Probably it's a good idea to get rid of any remaining smallpox samples, but to retain its DNA/RNA sequence for possible future study. The genomes for viruses a
by motters 15y ago
Probably it's a good idea to get rid of any remaining smallpox samples, but to retain its DNA/RNA sequence for possible future study. The genomes for viruses are typically not very large. If you printed out HIV it's maybe a couple of sheets of A4 paper.
- bhickey 15y agoSmallpox is a weird virus. A couple years ago I asked Tom Knight about the risk of someone ordering Smallpox oligos and making a viable virus. The problem is that it needs its own proteins to replicate. In other viruses it's sufficient to heat-shock the genome into the host. If we destroyed the viral stocks, it would be really hard to recover. Nasty freaking virus, but I don't think destroying it is smart. I bet you could bring the risk of an outbreak close to zero just by vaccinating everyone who works with the virus and everyone that they live or work with. I suspect that this is already standard operating procedure. Also, HIV is really tiny.
- djacobs 15y agoI'd say the possibility of recreating smallpox from custom oligos hinges on this: Is RNA polymerase one of the proteins that smallpox requires from its own genes, or would someone be able to use stock bacterial polymerases to recreate its full suite of proteins?