The US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has halted new clinical trials that involve exporting American cells to foreign labs in hostile countries for genetic engineering. This move comes after the Biden Administration’s policies were criticized as having created a “dangerous blind spot” in research security.
NIH Director Dr. Jay Bhattacharya stated that the agency is reviewing its entire research portfolio to determine if any federally funded clinical trials used an exemption that allowed American biological materials to be sent abroad for genetic modification, particularly to countries of concern.
The NIH’s goal is to protect Americans’ sensitive biological data while supporting life-saving innovation in a safe and secure manner. The agency aims to ensure that no NIH dollars are supporting clinical trials that compromise data integrity or national security.
NIH is the nation’s medical research agency, conducting and supporting basic, clinical, and translational medical research on common and rare diseases.
Source: https://www.nih.gov/about-nih/nih-director/statements/fda-halts-new-clinical-trials-export-americans-cells-foreign-labs-hostile-countries-genetic-engineering