STANFORD UNIVERSITY MEDICAL CENTER
STANFORD, CALIFORNIA 94305

DEPARTMENT OF BIOCHEMISTRY PAUL BERG

Jack, Lulu and Sam Willson
Professor of Biochemistry

June 11, 1973

Dr. Daniel Nathans
Department of Microbiology
Johns Hopkins University
School of Medicine
Baltimore, Maryland 21205

Dear Dan,

I'm writing to follow up on the Cancer CAP meeting
discussion of guidelines for Biohazard monitoring. Let me
say that I'm not in favor of doing nothing. But neither do I
favor becoming a regulatory agency for biohazard control.
Your suggestion of placing the burden on the investigator's
institution seems wise, provided we can supply them with
or direct them to an appropriate set of guidelines for con-
tainment of potentially infectious agents (and particularly
putative oncogenic agents).

To facilitate the drafting of a statement that would
not be overly restrictive, bureaucratic, but nevertheless
make sense, I'd like to get your views as to what general or
specific guidelines you would like to see investigators apply
to research with infectious biologic agents or tissues and
cell cultures known to harbor or generate such agents.

Perhaps when I've collected all of your views, we can
see what would be the best course for the Society to follow.

Sincerely yours,

f ['

oS 7
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PB:af

cc. Maurice Hilleman

George Klein
Edward Reich