Dr Allan Campbell.
S.U. Biology.
[stamped, DEC 28 1990]
Serratia as pathogen.?
Dear Allan --
Bernie Davis asked me to write a forward to "The Genetic Revolution"; and he sent me a copy of your chapter.
I'm not condoning the aerosol dissemination of Serratia in 1950; but I think you have accepted too uncritically that the same strain caused the fatal illness in the "NEVIN" case in San Francisco. Most Serratia infections -- and probably this one -- are caused by specific, unpigmented serotypes. They are not all that rare and can easily be confused as coincidence. You can ask Ken Vosti at Stanford Medical School for more background. The family obviously was eager to pin blame on the government. I think the court ruled they had not made a credible case.
Do you want to propagate a dubious myth?
Joshua.
I looked up some of the history -- see enclosures